William Tennent High Rallies Around Player With Cancer

WARMINSTER, PA —There was a "whiteout" at William Tennent High School's first home game of the season. And also a special surprise.

The game was advertised as a benefit for childhood cancer. But it turned out to be a day to remember for Nathan Gonzalez and his family.

At halftime of the varsity football team's game against Upper Merion High School on Sept. 8, Gonzalez had his No. 55 jersey retired.

Watch video of the ceremony and the game below

A jersey retirement is rare for a high school football player. But so was the diagnosis for Gonzalez, who is stricken with Medulloblastoma.

"We wanted to recognize his strength with this game," said Michelle LuBrant, vice president of the William Tennent Football Team Booster Club, who organized the event.

Gonzalez, a sophomore football player, received the diagnosis during his freshman season.

He started experiencing symptoms during football training in August 2022. Gonzalez was seen by several doctors, visited a cardiologist, a gastrointestinal specialist, and even had an endoscopy.

But nothing came out of it.

Then one day last December while in class, Gonzalez experienced blurry vision and a headache. He put his head down in class hoping it would go away but Gonzalez passed out and had a seizure.

He was rushed to the hospital; had a brain scan done and then was sent to Philadelphia Children's Hospital (CHOP) for further treatment.

Two days following the transfer, Gonzalez underwent brain surgery and then was diagnosed with Medulloblastoma, a form of brain cancer.

Gonzalez underwent daily radiation and two weeks of chemotherapy. In April, he started intense chemotherapy, which will last for six months. The treatments are 28-day cycles. His last treatment was right before the game in which Gonzalez rang the bell at CHOP.

His mother took a leave of absence from work and took care of Gonzalez, who lost 61 lbs. since his diagnosis. Doctors were concerned about the weight loss and placed him on a feeding tube to provide him with nutrients.

"We believe that the helmet may have been causing pressure on the tumor causing him to vomit and become dizzy," the family said. "We also believe that football may have contributed to saving Nate."

LuBrant said that cash proceeds from the game were donated to his family.

The football players decided that they wanted the game to be a "whiteout" game. They also wore purple socks (the color was chosen by Gonzalez. At half-time, Gonzalez was presented with his freshman No. 55 jersey, the last player to wear that style of jersey since the team received new jerseys.