General News

Rich, the theme of your regular messages is powerfully true: Never surrender to whatever circumstances life brings you. Accept the cards dealt and fight to win! Allow me to share my own life challenges and responses with you. When I left the army after years of military service in Airborne, Special Forces, Rangers, I was in pretty good physical condition from that life. However, in my civilian life, I allowed the lax circumstances of life as a clergyman to reduce me to a very weakened physical condition. This depressed me from my former self-sufficient self to a 'go with the flow' lax life style. I needed an awakening and it came in 1997 (age 69) in the form of prostate cancer diagnosis and radical surgery. After the surgery, my doctor told me that the cancer was in remission and I should just spend my remaining time relaxing. I looked in the mirror and compared my wasted self to my remembrance of my earlier excellent physique. I decided not to surrender to my condition, but to get on to the gym in a battle to restore my body and self-esteem. I entered a very intense body building program and found that my body became rejuvenated and my mind became stronger. I was doing nicely in the program, but in 2000 I learned my cancer was becoming active again and that I should undergo radiation to slow its progress. For three months I went daily to the hospital for radiation, but not until I had gone to the gym to continue the body building daily. The cancer went into remission again and is still inactive now. I competed in a number of body building contests, placing well in all of them, even when competing with those 10-15 years younger. The most notable of these contests was the 2004 NPC National Masters in which I placed 4th at age 76. About a year later I suffered a sciatic nerve injury which, along with my torn rotator cuff, decided that my body building competition was over.

I had no intention of surrendering to these conditions, however, and found that I could work thru them as a boxer, so I found an excellent trainer and am now (at age 80) still working out on weights three times a week, doing cardio for 45 minutes daily and in a full course of boxing training. I was not and still am not willing to surrender to the problems age and physical conditions have brought. While I still have a lot to do to become the best boxer I shall become, I will keep up the fight and I will win. "Fight the good fight with all thy might. Lay hold on life" will be my credo as long as I live.

John Pasco

Mstrsbodybuilder@earthlink.com

John Pasco.tripod.com

Attached is a story we would like to submit to American Fighter which illustrates the work ethic of an American Fighter. Jim Lombard Sr., and his son Chris are avid UFC and Rich Franklin fans. Thanks in advance for your consideration.

Wrestling practices are generally the bane of a wrestler's existence. They are grueling but necessary sessions that test the hearts and hone the skills of champions and newcomers alike.

You don't normally see much smiling at wrestling practices, but you see it at the practices in St. Mary High School, where Chris Lombard could not be happier to be. The practices are difficult, but after nearly losing far more than just the ability to wrestle, Lombard is grateful for every moment.

Lombard nearly died two years ago. His liver failed, his body shut down and only the miracles of modern medicine and the bravery of his father saved him. The liver transplant that gave Chris half of his father's liver was a blessing, but it was also supposed to mean the end of Chris' budding wrestling career.

His determination and refusal to give up on his sport seemed like wishful thinking until Lombard made his dream come true last month at the season-opening Kearny Tournament. He took the mat in his St. Mary uniform and wrestled for the first time in nearly two years. The fact that he won that first match, and went on to earn a silver medal, didn't matter as much as the fact that he had come all the way back.

"I just cried when he wrestled that first match," said Jim Lombard Sr., Chris' father. "We knew everything he had been through and how hard he worked and he almost looked like the old Chris.

"I never thought about not coming back, so being back out there was a great feeling," Chris said. "I'm not where I want to be as far as strength and everything, but I know that will come with time."

Chris has yet to reach the lofty levels he attained as a standout freshman on St. Mary's state title-winning squad. That really isn't a surprise considering he has gone almost two years without training, lifting weights or doing anything remotely physical except ride a skateboard.

That layoff hasn't shown in Lombard's results. He has posted a 13-5 record and is set to wrestling in the district tournament at the 130-pound weight class, where he would be a favorite to advance to the Region 4 tournament.

"His technique is amazing, it's the conditioning that we have to work on," St. Mary head coach Dave Cordoba said. "Early in the season he was wondering if he still had it and I had to remind him about everything he's been through.

"He's definitely got it and by the end of the year I think he'll be right there as one of the top contenders."

Chris' return has also helped spark the success of his older brother, St. Mary senior Jimmy Lombard, who was by his brother's side throughout his ordeal. With his brother back on the mat, Jimmy has flourished, finishing second at the BCCA Tournament and posting a 21-3 record, capped by a second-place finish at the Catholic Schools Tournament in Newark on Saturday.

"I think a lot of (Jimmy) excelling is doing it for Chris," Jim Sr. said of his oldest son. "It's almost like they're twins, they're attached at the hip. I think they're just glad to be teammates again and be able to experience everything together.

The brothers are hoping that their success on the mat will carry them to the state tournament in Atlantic City. It would be a fitting ending to their time as teammates considering it was at the state tournament two years ago when Chris first got sick and his liver failure set the course for a two-year struggle.

"Chris is having a great year and I think we can get there," Jimmy said about qualifying for the state tournament. "We keep pushing each other and getting better. I know he can do it."

The district tournament is still a month away, and there is still plenty of season left and plenty of opportunity for Jimmy and Chris to drill against each other, wrestle as teammates and experience all the things they were unable to last year, when Chris was battling back. There is little reminder of what Chris went through aside from the scar on his stomach.

Chris wants to keep it that way. He is healthy, happy and ready to reclaim his place as one of the best lightweight wrestlers in the area. Chris doesn't want to think about what he went through. He just wants to enjoy the wrestling career he nearly lost.

"This is a kid who hasn't had much to smile about in a year a half," Jim Sr. said. "You go to practice, where nobody is smiling, and there's Chris with a big smile on his face.

"We're all happy now," Jim Sr. said of the Lombard family. "We're going to enjoy every minute of it because we know how close we came to not having this."

My name is Kevin Mullin and I am a C5 Quadriplegic. Almost four years ago, I broke my neck in the ocean off of S. Florida. Immediately, Doctors told my family that I would never walk again, be completely dependent on prescription drugs, remain ventilator dependent, and will most likely DIE within a three year period. My family was devastated as I lay in the ICU in a drug induced coma.

Almost an entire month went by, until I finally became coherent enough to learn what the Doctors told my family. My older brother was the person who broke the news to me. At that point, he told me to either fight back against this injury every day for the rest of my life, or I was going to slowly die. Being a head strong/stubborn Irishman, I was not going to let any Doctor decide my fate. Two days later, I completely came off of the ventilator (breathing on my own again), and started cutting back on all of the prescription drugs that they had me on.

Almost four years have passed and I am at the peak of my performance since my injury back on October 6th, 2003. I am still alive, completely drug free, and working every single day to live a more functional/independent lifestyle with the chance to walk again someday soon. So far, I have beaten 3 out of 4 of the limitations that the medical community has placed on me. I "will" prove them wrong 4 out of 4, but the last one is the hardest of all. In a very strange way, the best thing most of the Doctors did for me was to tell me that I couldn't do something.

I would like to tell you my story as an American Fighter, overcoming great odds to achieve my personal goals and
ambitions.

I was born and raised in Cincinnati, then moved to Chicago in high school. After a few years, I almost graduated with
a college degree in finance and political science, but upon receiving some professional job opportunities, I realized
there was more to life than just a paycheck. I worked at a private school for children with special needs, learning the
true importance of education and the need for quality teachers. During these years in college, I have been
consistently working full-time because tuition, textbooks and typical monthly bills are too expensive for any regular
college student. College affordability is a very important issue that must be further addressed ASAP (the College Cost
Reduction and Access Act was a good first step). While I was working two jobs and attending the University of
Wyoming full-time last semester, my father passed away. He had various illnesses, but the death was still unexpected. It was the worst thing that has ever happened to me. I am in my mid-twenties and my father was only 56. I had trouble grieving and basically shut down.

It took around one month to get myself together and get back on track in school. I somehow made sure I did not
miss any work aside from one week where I returned to Chicago for the funeral services and helped my mother
organize things so she could sell the house. This was definitely the worst semester of my life, but thanks to an
amazing support group of family and friends, I was able to finish the semester without dropping any classes and still
have an overall 3.8 GPA. Next year, I will be student teaching in an elementary classroom and graduate with my
degree in elementary education. I also plan to pursue a masters in special education, as my parents always taught
me that education was the means to a better life.

Unfortunately, I will not be making near as much money teaching as I would have with a job in the investments
industry, but I will be able to wake up every day wanting to go to work and come home knowing I did something special
and important. Educating tomorrow's leaders in all aspects of the world can only help our society grow strong.
Hopefully the cost of college today does not deter too many students from entering the teaching profession and we can continue to recruit top quality teachers who will fight for children's rights and ensure "Great public schools
for every child."

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