River Hawks Welcome McCarthy Brothers on Team Impact “Draft Day”
3/7/2016 6:07:00 PM | Men's Cross Country/Track & Field, Women's Cross Country/Track & Field, Community Engagement, Team IMPACT
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LOWELL, Mass. – UMass Lowell Cross Country and Track and Field Head Coach Gary Gardner officially welcomed Sebastian and Lyric McCarthy to the team through a Team IMPACT Draft Day event on Monday afternoon at the Tsongas Center.
"We've just started and it's been a great deal of fun," said Gardner. "We've already had them at practice and at the gym and some of the kids went over to their house to play with them; we feel like they're part of the team. It's a terrific program and it's terrific to have them be part of our program"
The McCarthy brothers, ages five and seven from Littleton, Mass., were matched with the River Hawks through Team IMPACT, a Boston-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve the quality of life for children facing life threatening and chronic illnesses through the power of team by matching them with college athletic teams.
The brothers chose to be a part of the UMass Lowell cross country and track and field teams during a special Draft Day press conference. The energetic duo signed a Team IMPACT/UMass Lowell Letter of Intent and were greeted by the River Hawks' mascot, Rowdy, with a special message on the video board at the Tsongas Center.
"They've been great to my kids, they've been great to us," said Melissa McCarthy. "My children love them; they get excited to see them, they couldn't believe they were there for them. They are great mentors."
Five-year old Sebastian was diagnosed with an interstitial lung disorder at seven-months of age and also diagnosed with epilepsy, a genetic connective tissue disorder and an immune system disorder as well. Sebastian does walk but for longer distances he needs oxygen and uses a stroller chair. He wears leg braces and is fed through a g-tube (a tube surgically inserted into his stomach). Sebastian is verbal and developmentally on target and once he gets to know people he warms right up!
Mom, Melissa, says that Sebastian is the comedian of the family and it's expected that he will love being part of the team. Sebastian's favorite food is McDonald French fries, his favorite color is green and his favorite movie is Hook! Sebastian LOVES the villains of the movies and loves to dress up as Captain Hook!
Lyric is almost 7 years old and was diagnosed at 4 years old with an aspiration disorder. Lyric also has asthma, an immune deficiency, and wears leg braces as well. Although Lyric is on the Autism spectrum, he is very high functioning and can't wait to be a part of the team!
Lyric's favorite color is orange, his favorite TV show is Ninjago and he LOVES trading Pokémon cards! Lyric's favorite food is breakfast food, he loves pancakes and waffles and anything breakfast!
Team IMPACT is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is to improve the quality of life for children facing life threatening and chronic illnesses through the power of team by matching them with college athletic teams. Team IMPACT children are drafted on to college athletic teams, local to where they live and, in effect, become official members of the team from Draft Day through to Graduation. At Team IMPACT, they envision a future where the lives of children facing the hardships associated with adverse issues and events will have access to collegiate team-based support in order to significantly enhance their quality of life in a number of ways, including; socially, psychologically, physically and academically. Team IMPACT also strives to provide collegiate teams with increased levels of awareness, sympathy and support for the medical and disease communities. Established in 2011, Team IMPACT has already matched over 700 children with collegiate teams, at over 300 institutions in 44 states, improving the quality of life of hundreds of courageous children and touching the lives of over 21,000 student athletes. For more information, please visit: www.goteamimpact.org.
