Jake sought immediate treatment, but his physicians told him he wouldn’t be well enough to attend the ceremony at his school, Christchurch Boys’ High School in Christchurch, New Zealand.
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This must have come as a shock, because Jake Bailey, an 18-year-old at Christchurch Boys’ High School, was set to give a speech at the school’s graduation and award ceremony on November 4.
“They said “if you don’t get any treatment within the next three weeks you’re going to die”.
He said: ‘None of us get out of life alive, so be gallant, be great, be gracious, and be grateful for the opportunities you have.
In his emotional speech, Bailey urged fellow students to strive continually for success and to be the best version of themselves.
But, as the Herald reported last week, he was able to leave his hospital bed to deliver his speech from a wheelchair on Wednesday night.
Ross drowned during a trip to Sri Lanka but, according to Bailey, was widely adored as he had “done so much in his short years, giving life to the dying”. “Let’s be passionately dedicated to the pursuit of short-term goals”, said Bailey.
Fittingly, he finished with the school motto, “Altiora Peto” – a Latin phrase meaning ‘I aim higher’.
Christchurch Boys’ High School headmaster Nic Hill wrote an update on Facebook Sunday, praising Bailey as an “inspiration”.
Now, we can’t all save lives by transplanting organs, but we can make a difference in our own way… “Work with pride on what is in front of us”.
“I don’t know where it goes from here for any of us. Or when it might end up”.
At times choked up with raw emotion, Bailey soldiered on through his speech.
After finishing his speech, the rest of the assembly hall gave Jake a standing ovation, before a few of his classmates performed a traditional New Zealand haka. Tears in his eyes, Bailey mouthed “thank you” to his schoolfriends.
“It was great that Jake was reading it instead of me”.
The teenager was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma – a fast-growing cancer which is fatal if left untreated – in late October.
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Watch Jake’s entire speech above.
