; Devon Still accepted the ;Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the 2015 ESPYs on Wednesday on behalf of his 5-year-old daughter, Leah, who has struggled over the past year with a particularly dangerous form of ;pediatric cancer. ; “When my daughter was first diagnosed with cancer, I felt like I was in a nightmare,” he told the audience. After thanking his team and his ;fiancé for standing by him, the Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle took the time to specifically thank Leah. ; “I know you wish you could be here, but I know you’re watching. I just want to thank you,” he said. “From the moment you were born, you molded me into the man …
;
Devon Still accepted the ;Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the 2015 ESPYs on Wednesday on behalf of his 5-year-old daughter, Leah, who has struggled over the past year with a particularly dangerous form of ;pediatric cancer. ;
“When my daughter was first diagnosed with cancer, I felt like I was in a nightmare,” he told the audience. After thanking his team and his ;fiancé for standing by him, the Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle took the time to specifically thank Leah. ;
“I know you wish you could be here, but I know you’re watching. I just want to thank you,” he said. “From the moment you were born, you molded me into the man I am today.”
;”In the five years I’ve been with you, you’ve taught me more about life than I could ever [teach you].” ;
The Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle announced in an Instagram post ;on Tuesday that while Leah is now in remission, ;doctors nevertheless advised her against traveling to the award show, which took place at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. ;
In a video message, Leah thanked the public for their support. “Sorry I couldn’t be there everybody, but thank you for supporting me while I beat up cancer,” she said. ;
;
Still has documented his daughter’s battle with Stage 4 neuroblastoma on Instagram ;nearly every step of the way of her treatment. Over that time, Leah’s perseverance has served as an inspiration to people all over the world. ;
“This award is a testament to the inspiration Devon and Leah are to all the families who are suffering from similar circumstances,” Maura Mandt, the ESPYs executive co-producer, told ESPN.com. “It is our hope that with this award we can send them more strength as they face this latest challenge.”
Still’s speech was accompanied by a tribute video to Leah, which you can watch here. Here are some of the touching moments from ;Still’s Instagram account:
;
Also On HuffPost:
— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Link:
Devon Still Accepts Jimmy V Perseverance Award On Behalf Of Daughter Leah
