Catholic Memorial leading the state in football, and the nation in fundraising

WEST ROXBURY, Mass. — October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and a West Roxbury all-boys high school is leading the nation in school fundraising. On Friday night, the Catholic Memorial football team will wear pink to honor those fighting breast cancer. And for one the team's star players, the cause is personal.

The Catholic Memorial Knights are known as fighters on the football field.

"We're right now the top-ranked team in the state for football," said Dr. Peter Folan, the President of Catholic Memorial.

But on Friday they're not only fighting to stay at the top, they're fighting for a cause greater than themselves. The Knights are fighting for everyone battling breast cancer, and so are their fans who will arrive at the game wearing all pink.

"They're going to be rowdy, they're going to be cheering us on," said Zach Goodwin, an offensive lineman.

When the 75 players storm the field on Friday, they will be wearing pink socks to help raise awareness to the cause that affects so many of them personally.

"My mom, she's had multiple types of cancer," Goodwin said.

Goodwin is one of the team's captains, and for him, this is more than just a fundraiser.

"I just wanted to support my mom,” he said. "It's really hard to see that, especially seeing them go through the chemotherapy and all the medicine."

But supporting breast cancer awareness is nothing new for the school.

Every October more than 300 Catholic Memorial students participate in the Making Strides Breast Cancer Walk. Over the years they've raised close to $250,000 for the cause – a number that put the smallest school in the Catholic Conference at the top of the American Cancer Society's national donor list.

"What people fail to think about is boys are really sensitive right," said Dr. Folan. "They're really taking these ideas to home. They have huge hearts and part of this is helping them to process cancer in their lives."

That rings true to Goodwin, who says he'll cherish every moment of tonight's game, which he'll play in honor of his mom.

"My heart's just going to drop, it's going to be amazing because I've run on this field multiple times," he said. "This is my fourth year now, but it's going to be different seeing that all the stands are wearing pink, we're wearing pink, it’s just showing that they really do care."

Cox Media Group