Footballers around the world often become more than heroes to their fans. They can also become an inspiration of life to their fans. Steven Gerrard, the former Liverpool legend, and current player with MLS’ LA Galaxy, made one such kid's dream into a reality this week.
A Merseyside boy diagnosed with life-threatening disease Leukemia for the third time, got the chance to meet his idol, Steven Gerrard. Charlie Fearns, the 10-year-old boy suffering from the disease traveled to Seattle with his family to receive treatment when his doctor in the UK said his only chance of surviving is a revolutionary form of treatment which is not available in most parts of UK.
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A huge fundraising drive was made for the boy by his family and friends, where fellow scousers helped raise over £150,000 to pay for Charlie's critical treatment. The treatment is known as Car T-cell therapy and it is not widely available in the UK. This therapy, which uses a patient's own immune system to fight cancer, is still in very early stages of research and only a few clinics in America provide the treatment.
Last Sunday, during a break from treatment little Charlie and his brother Harrison, got to meet their idol Gerrard and the former Liverpool skipper gifted a personally signed LA Galaxy shirt to Charlie. The jersey number on the back was 16, a number currently vacant in the Galaxy squad. Gerrard already pitched in with a £25,000 donation for Charlie's treatment.
The two kids also got to act as mascots for the LA Galaxy team in their game against Seattle Sounders and were invited onto the pitch to meet their sporting heroes.
Many footballers have done this in the past to put a smile on their fans' faces. A year ago Cristiano Ronaldo surprised a kid on the streets of Madrid disguised as a homeless man and showed his skills with the ball. When the Portuguese star took off his attire the kid looked to be in disbelief in seeing his icon from such close quarters.
Just a few months ago an Afghani kid named Murtaza Ahmadi made headlines after being pictured wearing a plastic bag with Lionel Messi's name on it. Within a month, Leo Messi and UNICEF gifted the kid two signed jerseys from the Argentine himself and a football.
Football will never be as romantic without these little stories. Let's hope for a quick, speedy recovery for young Charlie Fearns.
