By Danielle Kutchel
Casey’s basketball family is rallying around one of their own as he battles cancer.
Reece Smith, vice president of the Narre Warren Warriors, was diagnosed with cancer at the beginning of the year.
A Go Fund Me has been set up by the Warriors committee to raise funds for the man, described as a “huge teddy bear” by loved ones.
At first Mr Smith refused to allow his friends to set up the fundraiser; it was the beginning of the Covid lockdown, and he didn’t want anyone to struggle on his account.
But as months of treatment passed, the club committee decided to do it anyway.
Tammy Roos, one of the joint organisers, said the funds raised will help Mr Smith pay the bills during his treatment, as well as tick a few items off his bucket list.
“He and his partner have bought a 4WD and a caravan, and they want to head over to WA as soon as they can,” she explained.
“We want him to be able to fulfill some of his dreams and … if he can tick that off in the next 12 months, then we can at least know that we helped him tick one thing off.”
Ms Roos said they had been floored by the flood of donations.
In just five days, the fundraiser pulled in more than $11,000 of its $15,000 target.
Ms Roos said she couldn’t believe her eyes when a single donation of $3650 was added to the tally.
At first, she was sure it was a trick – but it was then confirmed that in fact, a few famous faces were behind the generosity: Australian basketball legends Andrew Bogut, Andrew Gaze and Shane Heal.
She said Mr Smith had been overwhelmed by the support from the basketball fraternity, describing him as “selfless” and “always the first to put his hand up”.
“He’s a very humble person and doesn’t like to take praise, he doesn’t realise the respect people have for him,” she added.
“He’s had a big wake-up call this week! It’s the least we can do for everything he’s done for all the kids at Casey.
“As a basketball community and family, we help out our own.”
Anyone interested in donating to the cause can do so at https://www.gofundme.com/f/reeces-rebound
