Chances are we all know somebody who has been diagnosed with or affected in some way by cancer. As sad as this may be, the support, comfort and care shown by friends, family and communities can be overwhelming.

Last summer when my wife’s co-worker was diagnosed with stomach cancer, I witnessed someone fighting for his life — but not doing it alone. Sadly, after battling for 10 months, he passed away, but it was over the course of those 10 months, that I saw a lot of people band together to show their support and help him in his fight. I never really knew him, but got a glimpse into his life, what he was passionate about and how many lives he has impacted. He made a difference — in addition to being a physical therapist, he was an assistant college soccer coach and coached a youth soccer team as well. I heard enough stories to know that he will truly be missed by family, friends and the community he touched. He had a large support group, but the organization that made me take notice for their support was 3 Little Birds 4 Life.

Chances are that you’ve heard the captivating and peaceful lyrics from Bob Marley’s “3 Little Birds” sometime in your life – “Don’t worry about a thing ‘cause every little thing gonna be all right.” This song was the very essence of Guy “Tyler” Gifford, brother of 3 Little Birds 4 Life founder, Ashley Swip. Tyler was diagnosed with malignant melanoma in early 2010. It first started as a mole on the back of his calf that did not get treated right away. He had the mole removed, but it unfortunately came back as melanoma. Tyler had a Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scan, and the results were that the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes in his groin. He had the lymph nodes removed and all was clear. Three months later, Tyler had another PET scan. The melanoma had spread to his liver, heart, spleen, and bones. It was only a short 3 months later that he passed away. It was only a total of nine months from learning about his melanoma to his death on November 2, 2010.

It was through all of the treatments, surgeries, and the final stages that Ashley realized that Tyler, at 28 years old, needed to have one more great day doing the things that he loved. So, while he was still able to walk, she talked to the St. Louis Cardinal organization and had the perfect day made for him. That was the last time Tyler was able to hang out all day and walk during this wonderful experience. It was 6 weeks later after his wish that he passed away.

In the endeavor to make Tyler’s wish come true, Ashley quickly realized that it was necessary for other families currently battling a cancer diagnosis to be able to experience a wish. Tyler was granted an experience of a lifetime with the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals – to sit in the press box, meet the announcers and go on the field before the game during batting practice. A few months after Tyler’s death, 3 Little Birds 4 Life was created in his honor.

Tyler had a unique way of making each and every person around him smile, laugh, and remember that everything would be all right, no matter what. When Tyler passed away, the words from “3 Little Birds” were placed on his prayer card, and through his life, his caring nature, loving heart, and this song, 3 Little Birds 4 Life came to be.

It is because of stories like Tyler’s and others that I am choosing to dedicate my time to this organization and I urge others to do the same. I will help celebrate #GLSTL25 by volunteering at least 25 hours of my time toward granting wishes for 3 Little Birds 4 Life.

Right now, they have a pressing need for Wish Designers. There are many Wish Recipients just waiting to be picked up by a designer. However, there are many other ways people can help support 3 Little Birds 4 Life. Check out 3littlebirds4life.org to read more about donating, volunteering or their Workout 4 Wishes and Round Up 4 Me campaigns.

I recently volunteered for a day at Windsor Elementary, my daughter’s grade school, as part of the WATCH D.O.G.S. program.

WATCH D.O.G.S. (Dads Of Great Students) is a one-of-a-kind, school-based father involvement educational initiative of the National Center for Fathering. The program was developed to provide positive male role models for the students, demonstrating by their presence that education is important.

I’m not sure how much role model I was but I did learn a few things:

‘Down, lift, down, up, down’ is the correct way to write a capital M.

My first stop was a kindergarten class. I was assigned a boy, let’s call him Sam, to help him with the correct way to print this important letter. I was told Sam was a bright kid but didn’t have much of an attention span. He was so happy when he learned that I was going to help him. He pulled up a very small chair and told me to sit down. His first attempts looked more like scribbling. So I had him say the magic formula ‘down, lift, etc.’ and before too long, his M’s looked better than mine.

Recess has rules.

The next stop was recess monitor. The first graders had recess with the kindergarteners and my new buddy, Sam, was one of the kids. He immediately ran up to me to ask if I would play with him. There were many students on the monkey bars and Sam asked if I would lift him up – so I did. Well that’s when I learned about the recess rules. A teacher blew a very loud whistle and all the kids immediately froze in their place. Then the teacher, shouting in a voice that made me think of my Marine Corps boot camp days, said that only the upper classmen First Graders were privileged enough to use the monkey bars. I helped Sam off the bars and was glad I didn’t detention.

We aren’t born knowing how to use computers

My next class was the computer lab. The lesson for the day was how to type the letters “F” and “j”. I assisted the teacher by walking around the room to help the students position their hands correctly. This reminded me of my typing class, except this classroom didn’t have manual typewriters or carbon paper.

Milk cartons are hard to open.

Lunch was interesting. At first I didn’t know why the younger students would hold up their milk cartons when I walked by their tables. I soon learned that when little fingers tried to open their milk, much of the milk would end up on the table. I must have opened 40 cartons that day (and tied about 50 pairs of shoes).

Teachers are amazing time managers.

I was impressed with the teaching staff. Their days are planned down to the minute, and they move their classes around the campus with exacting precision. No child left behind!

And the best part…

… I got to spend time in my daughter’s classroom watching her learn important lessons in math that she will use the rest of her life.

In conclusion …

I am truly thankful for the opportunity to be a role model Dad for the day. I enjoyed helping the students and teachers. It was an exhausting day which made me appreciate the people who have dedicated their lives to educating our young.

More than 4,000 schools offer the Watch D.O.G.S. program. If interested, please contact your child’s school or visit http://www.fathers.com/watchdogs/.