COLUMN: One kind word can make the difference 

Published 1:02 pm Friday, June 6, 2025

This week, Troy receiver Chris Lewis retired from playing football after he went through a battle with bone cancer. 

Seeing such a young – and promising – athlete have to give up playing the game he loves was something I knew was likely but had held out hope wouldn’t be the case. I’m sure he did as well. Life sometimes seems unfair, but cancer doesn’t discriminate, young or old. 

When I was going through my own battle with cancer, I would get a direct message from time to time from Chris. On Aug. 13, 2023, I got a message that simply read, “Josh! Stay strong buddy. Love ya’ man” from Chris. I’ve said this before, but no one owes me anything. No player, no coach, no administrator, no one owes me a thing. Chris had been on Troy’s campus for just a few months at that point, and I had talked to me a few dozen times. He certainly owed me nothing, but he went out of his way to make sure I felt like I wasn’t alone. 

Knowing you have people in your corner means so much when you’re struggling with something as large and looming as cancer. Friends, family, coworkers, people you’ve met just a few times and even strangers telling you that they’re pulling for you can make so much more of a difference than most people know. 

Chris told me he never felt alone during his treatments, that so many players, fans, coaches and teammates – along with family and friends – rooting for him made him feel like nothing was too much for him. I felt the same way. No matter how bad it got, I never felt alone. I had my wife; I had family; I had friends; I had coworkers, I had plenty of coaches and players that I had covered over the years and random people I had never met who would send me well wishes and stop me along the way to tell me that they were praying for me or thinking about me.

I’ve never told this story, but after the Birmingham Bowl in 2023 a player’s father stopped me as I was coming out of the stadium. This parent stopped me to talk to me probably every single time I saw him after a game, so that wasn’t unusual. But this time, he looked me in the eyes and said, “I just want you to know that we are thinking about you. We appreciate you more than you can know and you’re going to stay in our prayers.” I had to do everything in my power to just thank him and walk the half of a mile in downtown Birmingham to my car without bursting into tears. Those things mean something. 

So, I know there are going to be many people that will feel sorry for Chris Lewis and wonder “what if” about his career. But there is a lot more greatness that will come from him. While he won’t be making any more leaping one-handed receptions along the sidelines to wow us, I have no doubt he will be someone that helps develop a future generation of receivers that do that. Those well wishes he received the last two years, no matter how small you think it may be, played a part in his coming out of the other side with his health.

If you see someone going through a difficult time, just a kind word can be the difference in someone’s day. You can get through anything, any pain, if you don’t feel alone. Remember that the next time you see someone struggling. 

 

Josh Boutwell is managing editor of The Messenger. Email him at josh.boutwell@troymessenger.com.