Matt Snodgrass
Matt Snodgrass was diagnosed with a malignant, recurrent
brain tumor in 1998 at the age of 9. As a seven time survivor
now at age 21, he has had 6 surgeries for removal of the tumor (the
3 most recent within a 12 month period), a 6-week radiation
treatment, gamma knife radiation treatment for another tumor, two
separate low dosage oral chemo treatments and a one year intravenous
chemotherapy program that he recently chose to discontinue after the
first seven months. So far that treatment has proven to be effective
and as of now he has had no further recurrences in the past year.
MRI’s are routinely done every 2-3 months.
Considering how long he has had to deal with this life
threatening disease Matt is doing extremely well. He continues to
inspire and motivate young people through his positive attitude and
optimistic spirit.
A Passion for Golf
Golf has been Matt’s passion for more than a decade when
his grandfather first started teaching him the game. He got his
first set of junior clubs at age 11 from his grandfather and has
been taking lessons ever since from his friend and mentor, local PGA
instructor, Frank Shaw. His enthusiasm for the game was highlighted
by his Make-A-Wish trip, sponsored by Gary Goett and Southern
Highlands, that took his family on an eight day trip to Edinburgh
and St. Andrews, Scotland where at age 13, he played the Old Course
on July 4, 2001.
Giving Back
Matt has long donated unselfishly of his time to
organizations to help raise awareness to childhood cancer and
survivorship. His dedication and efforts on behalf of these many
organizations include: Make-A-Wish Foundation, Candlelighters of So.
Nevada, American Cancer Society/Relay For Life, Pediatric Brain
Tumor Foundation, Lance Armstrong’s Live Strong Day, Leukemia and
Lymphoma Society and the American Cancer Society/Coaches vs. Cancer
tournament.
