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Vote here, help Rex win national award for a great cause
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By Randy York
Sunday is the deadline to vote for Rex Burkhead, so he can have an impact on a cause that's near and dear to his heart. Therefore, even if you've already cast an online ballot for the 2012 Uplifting Athletes Rare Disease Champion Award, please send the important links above to friends and family members and encourage them to be part of this important stretch drive.
Rick Burkhead is doing just that ... spreading the word about the importance of voting, and Rex Burkhead's dad makes it clear that his passion is not directed to his son. It is focused squarely on Jack Hoffman, the 6-year-old brain cancer patient that his son befriended last fall after Jack underwent one surgery in Omaha and prepared for a second one in Boston.
"The remaining part of the tumor is still an issue," the elder Burkhead said. "Jack still has a long road ahead of him, but every opportunity to bring awareness to his fight will possibly help save Jack's life, as well as many other children just like Little Jack."
That's why Rick Burkhead is a staunch Team Jack supporter and why he launched his own campaign to embrace the award and all it represents. Rex's dad says he's enjoyed the opportunity to spend time with the Hoffman family on a few occasions and is "very appreciative of the time they have allowed my family to spend with Jack and their family." Rick said that he and Jack "have competed against each other in several 'Burp Off' contests, and Jack is definitely the 'Burp Master.'"
Rex's dad provided several links in his own campaign to influence voting, including Little Jack's CaringBridge website. He also posted two links from Huskers.com - one with Jack and his parents shortly before his second surgery and another explaining the tight bond between a college running back and the 6-year-old that now motivates him every day of the year.
Rick Burkhead also provides a highlight link from the Nebraska-Ohio State game when ABC focused national attention on the Team Jack story, which originated on Huskers.com. In our request for another surge of votes for this national honor (only one vote permitted per email address), it seems appropriate to go back to the biggest comeback in Nebraska football history so we can see why Jack was such a motivating force behind it.
To add another measure of insight on this special relationship between two caring families, we also provide a link to a recent Scott Voorhees interview with Andy Hoffman, Jack's dad, on KFAB radio in Omaha. The N-Sider is pushing this cause because the game's on the line, and Keith Zimmer, Nebraska's Associate Athletic Director for Life Skills, wants Big Red fans everywhere to vote for Burkhead over three other worthy finalists who represent Florida, UCLA and North Carolina State.
"One last push from Big Red Nation seems right to me," said Zimmer, who nominated Burkhead for the award. "The winner will be announced on Wednesday, Feb. 29, on Global Rare Disease Day. That's why we're asking our fans to support what we consider to be a very meaningful award. We truly believe that a vote for Rex is a vote for Jack because it's also a vote to help cure pediatric brain cancer."
Send comment or a story idea to ryork@huskers.com
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