Go Gray in May for Brain Cancer Awareness

Pete Stachowicz was a fun, athletic, adventurous and successful young man. He loved playing hockey (two-time State title wins, Academic All Star for four years, two NIHL state wins and captain Jr. and Sr. yrs), running cross-country (freshman Most Improved runner), fishing, baseball (two-time All Star) and traveling. He graduated in 2016 from the University of Minnesota- Carlson School of Management majoring in management information systems. He had landed his dream job at Securian Financial in St. Paul. Only one short year later at the age of 24, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor called anaplastic astrocytoma with an incredibly rare tumor pattern called gliomatosis celebri. This pattern affects three of the four lobes in the brain. This aggressive and cruel cancer took away his ability to speak, walk and control of his dominant right side.  While he only lived for eighteen months after he was diagnosed, he never gave up hope and battled this cancer without one complaint. With great difficulty he was able to say to us, and we share this with those battling cancer, “Don’t give up hope!”