“Pray for Mason” signs can be seen throughout Ripon.
Mason is 15-year-old Mason Ferrulli, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor near his brain stem back about five years ago.
He’s had several surgeries since then, including the initial one at UCSF for removal of the tumor – the biopsy confirmed the local youngster’s diagnosis as being the extremely rare and aggressive Ependymoma Type A.
He underwent successful Gamma Knife surgery in May 2018 after an MRI from the previous month showed that his tumor had return.
“However, one year later the tumor had grown again, and Mason had two new tumors in his brain plus two in his lower spine,” said Justin Coenenberg in his recent letter to the Manteca High Athletic Boosters for his ‘Kicking for A Cure’ campaign.
He’s the girls varsity soccer coach for the Buffaloes. On Tuesday, Feb. 1, his team will face off against Weston Ranch High in the annual ‘Kicking for A Cure’ game at Guss Schmiedt Field.
All proceeds from this event will be donated to help Mason Ferrulli, who, according to Coenenberg, is currently battling extreme effects from radiation necrosis and has two remaining tumors in his brain that are being closely monitored.
“His symptoms include numbness on his entire left side, paralysis on his right side of his face, difficulty swallowing, lost vision in his right eye, severe nerve pain, and the inability to walk – Mason is in pain every day. In addition, all the medications have side effects, especially the steroids have caused him to swell up and gain almost 50 pounds,” Coenenberg said.
He added that along with the proceeds, donations – gift cards, items, experiences, food / beverages, etc. – will also be accepted for ‘Kicking for A Cure’ to help assist Mason and his family during these challenging times.
“The ‘Kicking for A Cure’ game is a chance to bring local awareness and hope to the fight against cancer while also supporting a student in our own community. Our coaches, players, faculty, families, and friends have all been affected by cancer in some way and are proud to sponsor this event to raise money for such a worthy young man his family,” Coenenberg said.
The running tally of Kicking for A Cure endeavors that have helped local people battle cancer for the past 10 years to more than $100,000.
For more information, call 209.608.0652.
