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Donte Whitner of
the Buffalo Bills Hosts His 2nd Annual Cancer Strike Charity
Bowling Tournament and His 1st Annual Youth Football Mini-Camp
During the first weekend of June Donte Whitner returned to his hometown of
Cleveland, Ohio to host a football mini-camp for the youth in the
community, create awareness of a disease that affects so many around the
world, and raise funds to battle it .
The
goal of Donte’s Youth Football Mini-Camp is to exercise sportsmanship,
leadership and teamwork, in order to instill proper team values for use in
both life and sports while displaying undying dedication and focus on
achieving greatness within. Sports had always been a positive outlet for
Donte growing up. Learning the fundamentals of sports taught him the
fundamentals of life, and allowed him to go out and add value to those
around him. The youngsters that participated in his camp benefited greatly
from his generosity, as did another cause close to his heart.
Last year Donte’s grandmother was diagnosed with lung cancer and he
immediately wanted to do all that he could to help. “Getting her the best
treatments at Cleveland Clinic just didn’t seem to be enough.” Said Donte.
That’s when he came up with the “Strike A Blow Against Cancer” Cancer Strike
Charity Bowling Tournament.
His
grandmother is currently in remission and is doing well. While he is
continuing his quest with lung cancer he has added raising the awareness of
Osteosarcoma to his mission.
Osteosarcoma is a serious form of cancer that is most common in children. It
is a malignant tumor that grows inside bones and is almost twice more common
in boys than girls ages 10-20. Donte brought a young man by the name of
Malcolm Hills, Jr. to Buffalo to witness the Bills victory over the Bengals
last November. While this was a trip of a lifetime for Malcolm, it was Donte
who was touched beyond measure by the strength this teen-aged boy embodied.
Malcolm was fighting a life threatening disease but did not become the
disease; he taught others to live life to the fullest. When Malcolm, Jr.
passed away on February 1, 2008 at the age of fourteen, there was no doubt
in Donte’s mind that he would continue to spread the knowledge that he
gained from this young man. So this year, not only is Donte doing this for
his grandmother and those who continue to battle with cancer, he is doing
this for his “kid brother” Malcolm “Snoop” Hills, Jr.
Donte states, “I am a strong believer that things happen for a reason and
although we may not understand why at the time, there is a reason bigger
than us. I am only one person trying to make a difference and not by my
words but with my actions.”
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