Fighting with Nate, Courage and Determination Forge Hope

HIGH SPRINGS ‒ For most 21-year-olds their focus is on having a job, money, dating or partying with friends. They rarely think about illness or mortality. For the most part, Nathan Blair was a typical teenager who went to High Springs Community School and graduated from Santa Fe High School where he played on the baseball team.

At the age of 19, and not far removed from his high school days, Blair was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a rare form of Bone Cancer. His whole life changed. And for his parents, Anna and Drayden Blair, it was devastating news.

Doctors operated to remove a tumor, and then Blair endured multiple bouts of chemotherapy and long periods sickness, magnified by the chemotherapy treatments. Nathan and his family had support from their friends and family, and events were organized to help with the medical expenses of his treatment.

For two years, Nathan seemed to be in remission and the family held on to threads of optimism. But that changed when several months ago a routine scan showed a mass near his clavicle revealing that the cancer had returned. After another operation, they are unsure of the prognosis.

“This is a much scarier time than last time, leaving us wondering if and when will it be back, are meds working, will I/he live a long healthy life are questions/thoughts that are constantly in our minds,” said Anna Blair. “He had his surgery in November, but the last scan he got shows another lesion close to the shoulder…After two years we never thought we would be going through this again, but here we are.”

Nathan had another surgery last week to be followed by months of radiation treatment. Yet, while the specter of cancer is always present in the family's thoughts, they stay positive of the outcome. By all accounts, Nathan is a young man with strong determination and a fighter. Based on his personality, the family started “Fight With Nate” complete with a Facebook page and events to raise funds for him and raise awareness of cancer, especially among young people.

Nathan has also begun making weekly videos talking not only about his own journey, but also to raise awareness of the disease. “If I can help raise awareness of Osteosarcoma to help others, it's well worth it,” said Nathan. The Facebook page has over 6,000 followers and strong community support.

On Saturday, Jan. 21, the group held a fundraising event at the High Springs Brewing Company attended by over 100 people showing their support for Nate’s fight. Food Daddy supplied BBQ pork dinners with all profits going to the Fight With Nate program. Musician Bryce Carlisle, backed up by several other musicians, and the band County Road 400 provided three hours of music as donations. There were also raffles with donated prizes, a 50-50 raffle and sales of Fight with Nate T-Shirts. The High Springs Brewing Company donated their venue for the event and 10 percent of their sales.

This is the second event the business has hosted for Nate. Brewery co-owner Kristie Ayers taught at Santa Fe High School and Nate was one of her students. “Nate is a great kid, and we are happy to support his cause,” said Ayers.

For the Blair family, the amount of support from the community has been overwhelming. “At this event we raised more than $5,000 to help with medical bills,” said Anna Blair. “The love, prayers and support we have gotten is amazing. It shows what compassion and caring there is in people.”

To learn more about the Fight With Nate project or to support the cause, information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/FightwithNate.

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