Student Honors Mentor Teen Lost to Cancer With Gold-Out Fundraiser at Playoff Game

A Lake County story that drew a community together three years ago is still inspiring young people, with a high school football player now building a fundraiser around the memory of Jack Sawyer, a Mentor teenager who died of cancer.

On Friday night in Warren, University School plays Howland, and the game carries significance beyond a playoff berth. Mike Papouras, a junior cornerback at University School, organized a childhood-cancer fundraiser called "Some Things are Bigger than Football," working with the CK Foundation. The aim, he said, is to "raise money to support families in the fight right now." The game will be a Gold Out, using gold, the official color for childhood cancer awareness. Mike said players will wear decals and gold laces.

The idea traces back to a similar game in Mentor on October 20, 2023. That night, the Mentor High Cardinals named Jack, then 17, as honorary captain while he fought Ewing sarcoma, an aggressive bone cancer. The stadium announcer introduced him to the crowd, and players from the opposing team, Euclid, who wore yellow, presented him with a shirt reading "Some Things are Bigger than Football."

Mike's father was superintendent of Euclid City Schools at the time, and the story stayed with Mike. "I was 13 at the time, and I realized, you know, there are kids who have to deal with things way harder than what I'm going through," he said. "I would like to make it a little easier for them." Jack died shortly after the 2023 game.

This fall, Mike wrote to Jack's mother, Dawn, seeking her blessing to honor her son through the fundraiser. "I never met Jack, but I keep thinking about a kid my age who loved football, loved being a cardinal, and still found a way to lift other people up," he wrote. "I want other kids to hear that too."

Dawn described the letter and the effort as an amazing gesture, saying Jack's legacy lives on and that she is deeply touched and proud. She is expected to join Mike on the field for Friday's Gold-Out game.

Jack's own words are part of the message as well. At the 2023 Mentor game, the announcer read a note from him: "Remember my motto, PACE: Positive Attitude Changes Everything." Mike said he hopes others will hear that motto and carry it with them.

Support for Jack's memory is also coming from his own school. Dawn said a Mentor High football player recently contacted her to say the entire Cardinals team will wear yellow socks in his honor Friday night against Euclid. The player told her the seniors made a point of finding a way to remember Jack. She also credited Justin Hodge, a former Mentor student who now plays at Miami University, with helping keep Jack's legacy alive.

Dawn said she is grateful to all of the young people for their love and support, and to everyone who continues to champion PACE and Jack's memory.