Community Corner

NCAA Tourney Trip Brightens Teen's Battle With Cancer

Thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, 16-year-old Charlie Burton will attend the Final Four and NCAA championship game this weekend.

It’s been a tough 16 months for Charlie Burton.

On Dec. 16, 2011, the 16-year-old from Fox Point was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive childhood bone cancer called Ewings Sarcoma. After undergoing 12 weeks of chemotherapy, a bone replacement surgery on his right arm, and another 22 weeks of chemotherapy, he is now finished with his treatments.

He continues to undergo physical therapy on his arm and requires regular checkups at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.

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"Thinking back on it now, it’s a bad memory," said his mother, Carrie Burton. "He’s been doing really well since then, but he's not out of the woods yet. Hopefully things continue to go well for him."

Life has been better for Charlie in recent months. He was able to return to regular classes at University School of Milwaukee in October, his high school golf season started Monday, and this weekend, he will watch the NCAA championship games live from the Georgia Dome, thanks to The Make-A-Wish Foundation.

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At the urging of his nurses, Charlie applied for the Make-A-Wish Foundation last year with the request of going to a sports event.

"They asked me where I wanted to go, and I decided that the NCAA tournament would be the best because I probably wouldn't have been able to go without the Make-A-Wish Foundation," he said.

Charlie is attending the Final Four and championship games with his father and two cousins. Make-A-Wish Foundation has also arranged for their hotel acccomodations, a tour of the Coca-Cola headquarters and a tour of the CNN studios.

Through hard work, Charlie was able to keep on track with his course work at home and has been able to stay at the sophomore grade level. And after an 18-month hiatus, Charlie was able to resume golfing during spring break in Arizona. This week, he began golf practice with the USM golf team.

This is the second time Charlie's sports dreams have come true since receiving his cancer diagnosis. In May, Charlie met Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews and Charles Woodson at a dinner for the Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer

Charlie is a huge Wisconsin Badgers fan, but he also roots for the Kansas Jayhawks because his dad grew up in Lawrence, Kansas. In Saturday's games, Charlie said he will be cheering for ninth-seeded Wichita State, which made it to the Final Four after upsetting second-seeded Ohio State.

It's only fitting that – after all he's been through – Charlie is rooting for the underdog.

"We just feel so blessed to have this opportunity," Carrie Burton said.


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