- May 12, 2024
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Sisters Jackie Lecza abd Michelle Lecza walked the track together (Photos by Emily Blackwood).
Sensei Dave Grabner recently got the news he is cancer free.
Barbara Roman and Jacqui Dominick showed off their purple colors at the relay.
After not seeing his doctor for about eight years, Dave Grabner decided it was time for a checkup. As the owner and sensei for Villari's Martial Arts in Ormond Beach, he had always considered himself a healthy guy, but luck was not on his side that Friday the 13th.
"You couldn't give me enough 13s that year," he laughed. "It was stage four head and neck cancer. It was major."
Grabner shared his story at Relay for Life on April 2, at Destination Daytona. He recalled going through seven months of chemotherapy and radiation therapy, and, though it was tough, he said a lot of good things came out of it — like connecting with Cameron Fulling, a kid who was also going through medical issues.
Before being diagnosed, Grabner met Fulling when he was 4 years old and wanted to attend Villari's like his cousins did.
"He told me from that day that he wanted to be a karate kid," Grabner smiled. "He went back to St. Jude's for another operation, and I sent a care package to him with his uniform, a bandana, a power card of dragon, because that's him."
After the operation, Fulling came back for training, and then Grabner was diagnosed. He said having this kid to look up to really made a difference.
"I looked at him like, 'Wow, this child, at such a young age, always has a smile on his face,'" he said. "If that little warrior can do it, I can do it."
And he did. Three weeks ago, Grabner celebrated his two-year anniversary of being out of treatment and is now, officially, cancer free.
