World of Good Blogburst, New Orleans Saints Style

Welcome to another World of Good (WOG) entry here at The Scratching Post. On Sunday morning I was puttering about the house, listening to my beloved New Orleans Saints over the Internet. During the pregame show, the Saints announcer, Jim Henderson, mentioned that the Saints were hosting a terminally ill child whose wish was to participate in the pregame coin flip and then to spend part of the game in the broadcast booth. KATC, a local TV station, posted the story on their website. Here are a few excerpts.

NEW ORLEANS -- Cameron Steib, 8, has a rare disease that saps much of his strength and enthusiasm. He can't walk very far on his own, and can barely speak above a whisper.

But none of that mattered on Oct. 15, when Cameron was the guest of honor at the New Orleans Saints football game against the Philadelphia Eagles and served as the game's junior captain.

Cameron presided over the pre-game coin flip and was treated like a star by everyone from the Saints' head coach to the cheerleaders. The adventure was arranged by A Child's Wish, a New Orleans-based charity that grants wishes for Louisiana children with life-threatening illnesses...

On game day, the family walked out to field level below the stands where they were met by Gumbo, a dog-suited mascot with big floppy ears and a number "01" Saints jersey.

Moments later, Cameron became the envy of every male in the building when he found himself surrounded by the Saintsations, the team's dance troupe. Cameron had enough sense to milk the moment, showing the dancers a little hip-shake of his own and blowing them a kiss.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Saints, I thought I would point out what a Saintsation is. This is not an gratuitous insertion of a photo of a total hottie in an effort to increase readership here at The Scratching Post. This is citizen journalism at its finest.

Bethany, one of the Saintsations. The public has a right to know.

Normally, the junior captain does the coin flip; in this case, Cameron's dad carried him onto the field so Cameron could witness it. Still, it was quite a scene. Dad came away beaming, while Mom wiped away tears.

After the flip, Cameron went upstairs to watch from the radio booth, meeting New Orleans sportscaster Jim Henderson and former LSU and Saints running back Hokie Gajan...

When asked if he was having a good time, Cameron leaned forward slowly, eyelids drooping, before letting out a soft, drawling "yeah." But his enthusiasm showed. One minute, he was on Dad's lap, sipping Gatorade. The next, he was standing, stomping his tiny feet with the other 68,000 or so fans to the stadium standard "We Will Rock You."

This next quote is another illustration of just how common the World of Good really is.

When another young fan, Kaleb Joseph, 6, offered Cameron his giant inflatable Saints helmet, Cameron put it on with a smile.

I wish I had a picture of that 6-year-old to post. What a great thing to do.

The Saints won the game on a last-second field goal by John Carney. The SuperDome went wild.

Dubya, one of the key contributors at SaintsReport.com took this photo of the postgame celebrations on the field.
Cameron had a special view of the celebration at the end of the game.

The family waited by the locker room door, getting waves from many of the players. Bush approached Cameron and gave him a pat on the head. Near the end of the line was coach Payton, who picked up Cameron and carried him into the victory celebration.

Here's a little bit about A Child's Wish.

"A Child's Wish" is a Louisiana based non-profit organization fulfilling the dreams of children who must make plans one day at a time.

Our staff are all volunteers . . . making it possible that every dollar we receive is utilized directly for our children.

Our greatest ally is the universal love most of us share for children. Our most uncompromising enemy is time.

If they don't embody the World of Good, then no one does. Visit their site. You might be able to help.

The World of Good is this blog's most popular series by far. The whole set can be accessed from this post.