Mahopac Sports Association Rallies Behind Mahopac Family

Sean Callahan is fighting for his life—again.

His parents, Dan and Janine Callahan, have seen Sean’s fighter mentality before. Whether it’s on the football field or in the hospital, they’ve seen their son battle courageously.

And now, they’re seeing him forced to fight again. For the second time, Sean, only 10-years-old, is trying to overcome his bout with cancer.

After beating a rare and aggressive form of cancer when he was a toddler, Sean developed a different and even rarer form of cancer in June 2013. And while Dan and Janine are once again seeing their son battle back, an entire community is standing behind him looking to assist in any way they can.

“We can’t turn the corner without someone trying to help us out or trying to help one of the kids,” Dan said. “Or do something for someone in the family.”

And that assistance will be on full display Monday, Sept. 30 when the Mahopac Sports Association (MSA) hosts a charity event for Sean called “Long Drives for Sean” Community Fundraiser at the Putnam National Golf Course. Registration starts at 11:30 in the morning and the shotgun/best ball format begins at 12:30 p.m. All the proceeds go to the Callahan family–six children in all–with Sean being the oldest.

Dan admits while Sean would regularly go for check-ups to make sure he was healthy, he never thought cancer would be back in his son’s life. As a toddler, Sean dealt with years of surgeries, chemotherapy, two stem cell transplants and radiation therapy, but showed great perseverance.

Indications of a problem arose in June though, when Sean started having headaches that became increasingly worse. After several days of those headaches, he began throwing up and was rushed to the emergency room, where he had an MRI taken.

The MRI revealed he had a brain tumor the size of a softball.

“I thought this was behind us,” Dan said.

Sean, who loves school, hasn’t been able to attend this year. Right now, he’s at the Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital in Valhalla. Because he’s had low blood counts, he been getting blood transfusions and the effects of chemo, such as aches and thinning hair, are starting to emerge.

But through the adversity, his parents have seen a young boy who continues to have a positive outlook.

“He wants to cry but he picks it up,” Dan said. “He’s been able to battle though it everyday that he’s been there. He wants nothing more than to go home. Everyday is another day here, another day here but he finds a way to get through it.”

And that mentality carries over to every facet of his life.

Sean plays a wide range of sports, with football being his favorite. On offense he plays split end, while on defense, he’s a safety. Dan said he might be little, but loves contact.

Being the oldest of six siblings, they all look up to him. His teachers describe him as empathetic, an adjective Janine said isn’t used much to describe a 10-year-old.

He’s even written his own children’s book titled “Don’t Give Up. Advice From A Ten Year Old Cancer Survivor” that is in the process of being published. This past year, his Relay for Life team, “Sean’s Soldiers,” raised more than $3,500 for the American Cancer Society.

“Sean’s always been a leader. Very confident in his ability to do things and handle things,” Janine said.

And Sean’s tremendous resolve helps comfort his parents. Dan said even in a terrible situation like the one he’s in right now he can still bring an entire town together, with the community rallying behind the family with such intensity.

The MSA’s work is far reaching, with the main focus on helping children get involved with sports. All the members are volunteers.

Tim O’Keefe of the MSA started the Long Drive event back in 2010 to assist cancer patients with hospital bills. This year, it was decided Sean and his family could use all the help they could get.

MSA President Roger Garcia said the group is deeply involved in helping out all kids in the community.

“When they’re doing good, we feel good,” Garcia said. “When they’re not doing good, we’re not happy.

While Dan and Janine said Sean hope to be able to attend at least part of the fundraiser in his name, they know he can hear an entire community rooting for him. His optimistic outlook has been inspiring.

Just like when he’s playing football, when Sean gets “knocked down, he gets right back up.” In this case, cancer might knock him down, but with a positive attitude, like he did once before, Sean’s ready to fight again and overcome it.

For more information on the golf outing, please visit msasports.org