Stephen has covered sports in the tri-state area for the Times Free Press for more than 25 years and was named Sports Editor in February of 2015 after 10 years as assistant sports editor.Only weeks earlier, in December 2014, Berry had been told he had Hodgkin's lymphoma, and as he made his way through the pediatric oncology hall, he felt a sudden kinship with the kids he visited. Walking from room to room, an odd thing happened as the NFL star who was supposed to serve as the source of encouragement that day instead found himself as the one who was inspired and filled with a renewed determination to fight the disease with every ounce of strength he could muster.
"Seeing those kids, some of them just 2 or 3 years old, and the way they were dealing with undergoing chemo and radiation and still smiling and even playing with toys, man, that hit me," Berry said. "They didn't even understand what was going on or why they were having to go through the needles and being sick, but they were fighting and at least for a little while they would find time to smile and try to have fun and just be a kid.
"That changed my whole mentality. I realized there were people out there who had it way worse than I do. I made up my mind right then, if those little kids could fight through it, if they could go through all that and still smile, then who was I to feel sorry for myself? Instead of 'Why me?' I started thinking, 'Why not me?' I'm no different than anybody else. It made me go even harder, and I knew if I'm going to beat it, I'm going to beat it by going 100 percent every day."
An All-American at the University of Tennessee, where he remains one of the most beloved and respected players in program history, Berry did just what he set out to do and was declared cancer-free in time to return to the field before last season, just seven months after his diagnosis. He was named the league's comeback player of the year, earned his fourth Pro Bowl selection, was selected for the All-Pro team and was chosen as the Chiefs' MVP after making 61 tackles and two interceptions and helping the team reach the playoffs.
Berry admitted recently that earning awards for his on-field accomplishments pales in comparison to the lessons he learned in the months during his battle with cancer. And that is a part of the message he intends to share with more than 1,200 area athletes, coaches and their families as the guest speaker at the annual Times Free Press Best of Preps banquet June 9 at the Chattanooga Convention Center.
"The low point for me was in the beginning, right after the first or second chemo treatment," said Berry, who plans to attend Saturday's Orange and White spring game at UT, where his younger brothers, twins Elliott and Evan, are now on the team. "I didn't think I could go through six months of feeling the way I did at first. My body was in shock. But my dad gave me a pep talk and said it was OK to rest if I got too weak, because he and my mom and my family would be there for me, and then I could fight when I felt up to it. I needed that positivity.
"Really, the biggest thing I learned from what I went through was that it forced me to slow down and appreciate all the things that I had been overlooking. We're in a day and age with so much technology and fast pace, but sometimes it's cool to just sit and watch the birds or watch the sun come up or go down. I appreciate the daily miracles like flowers and getting to hug the people I love more now because I appreciate life more. Hopefully that's a message I can get across to the folks in Chattanooga."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.