Two simple words. “Stay Positive.”

Butler University junior Eric Day takes them to heart. So much so that he has started a campaign with wristbands featuring those words.

Day learned he had brain cancer in December 2010, and during treatment at Jill’s House in 2011, a little girl named Allison helped him go through radiation. Everyday she told him to “stay positive.”

Day said he followed her instructions through the end of his treatment last March and beyond. Upon leaving Jill’s, Allison sent him a card. At the bottom she signed it, “Stay positive.”

Last fall he began a campaign with rubber wristbands bearing those words. He also took advice from Butler senior basketball player Rotnei Clarke and added his “G3” motto, standing for “give God glory.”

The wristbands circulated a little bit on campus all year but really began to gain attention recently when junior basketball player Erik Fromm was wearing one during an interview regarding the recent loss of his father.

Leonard Fromm died of cancer the morning of Feb. 2, hours before Butler’s game against Rhode Island.

Fromm, a friend of Day, said he has supported the cause since he first heard about it.

“There’s always a lot of people that are worse off than you,” Fromm said. “Like I said on the news, there’s a lot of silver linings. With my dad, I got to spend an extra seven months with him.”

Fromm said he knows he could have spent more time with his father, but it would have been very difficult for him and his family to watch him continue to suffer.

There is a Facebook group called “Stay Positive Wristbands” that is helping the cause in its early stages. The group has reached more than 400 “likes” as of press time.

Day said the main goal of the organization is to help give people a positive outlook on daily life.

“We just help every person we can, and give them a positive outlook and remind them of the daily reminders that there’s somebody worse off,” Day said.

Fromm said he is currently going through a process to become a part of the organization due to NCAA policies.

If he is cleared to do so, the two hope to eventually make it a national organization and become recognized as their own foundation.

All proceeds will be donated to cancer research, Day said.

Day already has plans reaching far outside Indianapolis.

“We have a story a newspaper in Chicago wants to do,” Day said. “One lady from Texas has ordered 100 bands. In St. Louis, some lady wanted 50.”

Despite going through a long process, Fromm remains optimistic on becoming involved.

“If I’m cleared, then I’ll be a part of it too,” Fromm said. “Eric’s still going to do it, and all the money will go to cancer research.”

Day said he can foresee his project reaching stages as prominent as the NBA and NFL.

“We’re hoping to hook up with Shelvin Mack and (Gordon) Hayward, and I’m also close with the Harbaugh brothers,” Day said.

“ESPN loves peoples’ stories, so when we get to the tournament, they’ll hear my story, and then they’ll talk about the bands, and it could be a countrywide thing,” Fromm said.

Day said they cannot currently sell the wristbands on campus because they are not a recognized student organization.

Clarke spoke at a student-led church service last Sunday and mentioned the wristbands.

Austin Weaver, Converge president, said the wristbands will likely be available at this week’s service Sunday at 4 p.m. in the Johnson Room at Robertson Hall.

Strength and conditioning coach Jim Peal has a reputation among Butler faculty for successfully and efficiently shaping players for each of the school’s 19 athletic programs for the the past decade.

When Peal announced last Tuesday he had been diagnosed with colon cancer, the response was immediate.

An outpouring of support from the Butler community and those around him followed.

A Facebook page bearing the slogan  “I Have Coach Peal’s Back” has already amassed over 1,000 supporters, and plans have begun to take shape for a fundraising plan in his honor.

The page’s creator, former Butler football player Peter Xander, is planning to have T-shirts available soon.  The T-shirts will say “I Have Coach Peal’s Back” on the front. The phrase “Nothing Wrong with Being Strong,” a popular saying of Peal’s, will be on the back.

Freshman football player Jimmy Cook has only known Peal for a short time but said his impact on the team has been tremendous.

“I was shocked, but I know he is a strong guy, and he can definitely pull through it,” Cook said.

Peal hasn’t let his battle with cancer get in the way of his work. Cook said he still remains active with the team.

“He’s totally involved,” Cook said. We lift four days a week, and he’s there every day, on our backs, making sure we get everything done.”

Currently, wristbands stating “Pealstrong” are on sale for $5 each, with the accrued funds going to Peal or the charity of his choice.

A message posted by his wife, Susan, said she was blown away by the amount of support by those here and in the surrounding area.

“Neither Jim or I are ones for much attention, but Jim is seeing how much he means to so many people,” she said. “It is so appreciated and getting him through this. This is a wonderful community of support.”

Peal has been with the Butler athletics program since 2003, and was officially named head strength and conditioning coach in 2005.

Peal underwent a successful surgery Monday and is scheduled to be released from the hospital Friday. From there he will continue his recovery at home. There is no immediate timetable for his return.

So many things divide Butler University’s student body, whether it be graduation year, major, Greek affiliation—or lack thereof—political ideals, or even favorite color.

But on Friday, the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life event at the Health and Recreation Complex brought participants together in a way that I have not seen before on this campus.

Cancer doesn’t care what year people are, what Greek house they’re in, how much money they’re going to make after graduation or how many people love and care about them.

Cancer is a disease that is universal, and it has touched the lives of each Butler student, including those who have lost loved ones to the disease and those who have not.

I was truly moved by the togetherness as I walked around the track at the HRC and saw men and women of different affiliations and groups crying and consoling one another.

Relay for Life, or Dance Marathon earlier in the year and Butler sports, are events that we, the Butler community, can all rally behind.

We must use these moments to remind us that there is more that unites us than separates us.  We are all Bulldogs, Americans and humans.

The nearly $54,000 that Butler’s Relay for Life raised to fight cancer is an astonishing amount that should make everyone who participated in the event proud.

Two of the main speakers  turned the event from just another function where students could hang out into an emotionally charged affair.

Cancer survivors Heather Banks and Jim Wesp, father of Butler student Sarah Wesp, spoke at Relay for Life about their fights with the disease.

They talked about how their battles with the disease have made them stronger people, made them appreciate life more and taught them that there are things worth fighting tooth and nail for.

These ideas of community and togetherness are best described in the words of author J.K. Rowling. “We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.” Rowling wrote, “Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.”

I believe that we have seen some great things happen to Butler.

We’ve seen streng and unity in our community from the back-to-back national title game runs by the men’s basketball team.

More recent events include Dance Marathon, Relay for Life and the Butler Palooza concert on the mall on Saturday.

It would be foolish to think that there will be a point when all in the Butler community can get along perfectly.

But I hope that, in the coming years, we as a community can work on respecting our differences and find ways to work together to improve our school and our society.

For the men of Phi Kappa Psi, planning their fall philanthropy event to support the American Cancer Society is more than just something to add to a résumé.

Three members of the fraternity have been personally impacted by cancer.

Sophomore Alex Morris was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in April 2002.

“Obviously my family was upset [when we found out],” Morris said. “It was just shocking, but we took it in stride.”

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia is a cancer of the white blood cells, specifically a type of white blood cell known as a lymphoid. These lymphoid cells are immature white blood cells and therefore are incapable of helping the body fight infections.

“It was rough,” Morris said. “I went through seven months of hard chemo and then I had a three year maintenance plan. It was not too bad, but it still made me feel sick. But honestly, if I could take it back I wouldn’t, just because of the values and the lessons that I learned along the way and all the people that I met.

“Don’t get me wrong, it really sucked, but I learned so much.”

According to the National Cancer Institute, 85 percent of children diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia live for five years or more after their diagnosis.

“I am completely fine now,” Morris said. “They say that after five years of being in remission that you are totally cured.

“As far as the recovery process, I was always involved in sports and it set me back, but after I got all done with treatment, it was like everything just bounced right back into place.”

When Morris learned about Phi Kappa Psi’s philanthropy during recruitment last year, he was excited for the opportunity to work alongside of Phi Psi brothers and the American Cancer Society.

“We have done a lot of fundraising so far this year,” Morris said. “I am learning the reigns.

“I have never done something like this with a huge organization, so I am trying to learn everything so hopefully this spring or next year I can get more involved with a leadership position.”

Morris found support through all of the brothers of Phi Kappa Psi, but especially from junior John Evans, whose younger brother James Evans, was diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia in September 2008.

Evans said the past two years have been a roller coaster.

With his brother going through treatment in Minnesota, Evans struggled with being so far away while at school, but was grateful for the support of his fraternity brothers.

“[The Phi Psi brothers] were all incredible and very understanding of what was happening,” Evans said. “I remember when they all first heard the news, a group of them got together with my older brother, Brad (Butler/Phi Psi alumni class of 2010) and me, and we shaved our heads to show support.

“We then sent the picture to James and he called me as soon as he got it and was ecstatic. He thought it was the coolest thing ever.

“The brotherhood had never even met him but because they knew Brad and myself, they were willing to look like aliens for a semester.”

Phi Kappa Psi works with the American Cancer Society to raise money for research to battle cancer by hosting a 5K run as their fall philanthropy event.

According to junior Cliff Mueller, all donations go directly to the American Cancer Society.

“We are setting our goal at $10,000 this year,” Mueller said. “We will be fundraising in many different ways. We will be having T-shirt sales, a giveback night at Noodles on Friday Sept. 24, corporate sponsorships and donations from families and friends.

“We hope that all of this will allow us to meet our goal.”

The brothers of Phi Kappa Psi are excited for the approach of the Phi Psi 5K.

“The Phi Psi 5K is a wonderful opportunity to put our support behind the American Cancer Society,” Mueller said. “Phi Psi brothers, family members and friends have all been directly affected by this disease and we take pride in being able to support the American Cancer Society in their effort to end cancer.”

More Than Just a Fundraiser: Runners line up at the start of the 2008 Phi Psi 5K. The run has more meaning to Phi Kappa Psi as two of their members been personally affected by cancer. (Photo courtesy of Cliff Mueller)