George Mason University Athletics

Patriots Welcome Mia Grace to Basketball Family

Women's Basketball 1/26/2017 7:52:00 PM

FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason women's basketball team welcomed a new teammate Thursday.

Through the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, the Patriots adopted 3-year-old Mia Grace as a new member of the team. Friends of Jaclyn pairs high school and college sports teams with children battling pediatric brain tumors and other childhood cancers.

In November 2015, Mia Grace, from nearby Falls Church, Va., was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Just three days later, she underwent a 14-hour surgery that concluded with a successful 100-percent removal of the large, malignant mass on her brain. Though she spent two weeks in the pediatric intensive care unit, she was walking just three days after the surgery. A week later, she was singing happy birthday to her mother.

She received six months of high dosage chemotherapy and six weeks of radiation treatment for five days a week. More than a year later, Mia's mother, Bernadette, says her daughter is doing "fantastic" and enjoying making new friends at preschool. And every morning, Mia tells her mother "the sun is awake."

On Thursday, she gained an entirely new family and jumped right in as she joined her new Mason teammates in running around the court, post-practice stretching and even huddling up to hear some words from head coach Nyla Milleson.

"I'm just excited because I love to see her so happy," Bernadette said. "I'm sure you heard her laugh. There is nothing better than that sound. Right there is all I've ever wanted. Just seeing her run and being strong out there is amazing. This is all I ever wanted. I know (meeting the team) is all I am going to hear about. She is just going to say, 'My girls, my girls.'"

The George Mason athletics department is no stranger to Friends of Jaclyn and its mission. The softball team adopted an 8-year-old more than three years ago. That's how guard Tayler Dodson (Harrisonburg, Va.) first heard about the organization.

On behalf of the women's basketball team, she reached out to Friends of Jaclyn about a year ago. After sitting on the waiting list, the team was contacted by Mia Grace's family three months ago.

On Thursday, Mia Grace, Bernadette and neighbor, Gail, met the team for the first time. After practice and after taking photos with the team, Mia Grace officially signed a national letter of intent. She received several gifts, including a green George Mason shirt and pom-pom.

"Unbelievable experience for all of us," Mason head coach Nyla Milleson said. First and foremost is that little girl and being able to help provide her some happiness and laughs. Just watching the interaction with the team today has been incredible. I have been involved with some things like this before and the impact it will have on our team. We talk about toughness all the time. I have a feeling we'll come in tomorrow with a little bit different level of toughness."

Also on hand was Denis Murphy, the founder of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation. He made the trip down from New York and spoke to the team about his experience. He started the foundation in 2005, a year after his daughter, Jaclyn, was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.

Jaclyn received support and friendship from a collegiate lacrosse team, which inspired Murphy to reach out to other families with children with pediatric cancer. Twelve years later, the foundation has helped out more than 700 families.

"We improve the quality of life by pairing them up with the team and they get love, support and friendship," Murphy said. "There is no chemotherapy, no radiation treatment, no clinical trial drug more powerful than the love, support and friendship they get from this team. Most of the children who are afflicted with this cancer their life changes, they are on a different journey, so they lose their normalcy, the normal world they are from and they get put in this bubble. For these teams to come in as team members and treat them normal, in their world, is pretty powerful and pretty priceless."

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Players Mentioned

#32 Tayler Dodson: G/F; 5' 11"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#32 Tayler Dodson
: 5' 11"; Junior
: G/F

Players Mentioned

#32 Tayler Dodson

Players Mentioned

#32 Tayler Dodson