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Friends for Life: The story of a big-time QB and a boy with Down syndrome

Sunday, May 21, 2006

By Paul Zeise,Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Chris McGough used to hold his ears and close his eyes while sitting in a stadium watching his older sister, Julie, lead cheers forWest Allegheny High School's junior-varsity football team. The noise and activity were simply too much for McGough, even though there were only a few people in the stands.

But these days, there is no place McGough, a 17-year-old junior atWest Allegheny who was born with Down syndrome, would rather be than in stadiums full of rowdy fans cheering his two favorite teams -- the West Allegheny Indians and the Pitt Panthers.

His loyalty toWest Allegheny is easy to understand because it is his home school district, but his loyalty to the Panthers goes much deeper and is more personal.

McGough cheers for the Panthers because Pitt quarterback Tyler Palko is a mentor and one of his best friends. The two are inseparable, say those who know them, and they developed a close bond when they were in elementary school and lived on the same street in Imperial.

Now, Palko and McGough have teamed up and hope to help others with Down syndrome realize their full potential. The result is the TC (T for Tyler, C for Chris) House Foundation, a non-profit organization established to raise enough money to provide a group home for individuals with Down syndrome in Imperial.

Palko said McGough, the manager forWest Allegheny's varsity football and basketball teams and the bat boy for the baseball team, has been as much of an inspiration to him as he has been a mentor to McGough. And Palko's always looking for opportunities to help others, so it seemed natural his first big project would be to try and help those with Down syndrome.

"I've always said that whenever I was in a position to do something to help, I would," said Palko, aWest Allegheny graduate. "When I approached Chris' dad, Steve, about this, he told me to go for it. We started last year with a golf outing and we've done a couple more fund-raisers since. It is something we're building and, hopefully, we'll be able to realize our dream and build a group home over the next few years."

Last weekend, the TC House Foundation held its second golf outing at Quicksilver Golf Club in Midway, and 126 people participated. That's a big jump from last year when 91 golfers participated. Palko anticipates that the number will grow as word about the charity spreads.

Palko said he took McGough under his wing at a very young age. When Palko and his friends played football or basketball in the street, McGough wandered outside to watch them from afar. But Palko made sure he was included, and he soon was accepted as one of the guys.

One day, when McGough was in kindergarten, he walked out of an open door in his classroom and got lost in the building. McGough actually wasn't lost, though; he was sitting with Palko in his classroom. Since then, whenever Palko is around, McGough seems to find him.

McGough's father, Steve, said that story illustrates how much Palko's friendship has meant to McGough. And he credits Palko and his father, Bob, the head football coach atWest Allegheny, with helping to ease what he said was one of his biggest fears when he first found out his son had Down syndrome.

"I think what goes through your mind first is, how will he fit in? How will he be accepted?" Steve McGough said. "With Chris, it has never been an issue because Tyler and Bobby embraced him and have brought him along and the community has followed. Wherever we go, people love Chris, and a big reason why is he has always had Tyler, who -- let's face it, is a popular figure in this community -- as his big brother. He has always been made to feel included, a valuable part of the teams he works with."

Through the years, the Palkos have helped incorporate McGough into the community more and more, mostly through athletics. He has been a fixture at football games, first as a water boy and the kid who fetched the tee after a kickoff, then as a full-blown manager.

Once he got into high school, he began working with other sports, and his schedule now is similar to that of a three-sport athlete. He also works at Subway as part of a work-study program throughWest Allegheny.

The fact that McGough is so busy can sometimes tax his parents, but his activities have been an essential part of his mental and physical development. Down syndrome is a genetic condition which can cause delays in physical, intellectual and language development.

"Chris' sense of self-worth, his self-esteem, his confidence, they are very high," Tyler Palko said. "I think a big part of that has been the fact that he's had an opportunity to do a lot of things and, really, that's what life is about, an opportunity. There are a lot of kids with Down syndrome who are hidden, or sheltered, but Chris' parents have really let him get involved, and you can see how far he's come.

"But don't get me wrong, I've learned a lot from him as well. The way he appreciates the simplest things, the way he treats people and loves to laugh and loves life -- it helps bring everything into perspective."

Linda McGough, Chris' mother, added, "We've seen him blossom over the past few years, his personality develop. He loves people, he loves being around people. I don't know that he'd be where he's at if he wasn't embraced by the community the way he's been. He's been made to feel important and loved, and that's really a key in anyone's development."

McGough's personality is such that he is both likable and a pleasure to talk to. He has a great sense of humor, and his relationship with Tyler Palko is cleary special.

Palko recently took McGough on a tour of the Panthers' workout facilities, and the two spent most of the time teasing each other and sharing laughs.

"Chris, why don't you show us your pipes?" Palko asked at one point, referring to McGough's biceps since he had just finished lifting weights.

"Don't listen toTyler, he's a knucklehead," McGough said.

Then, he proudly flexed his arm muscles.

"No, I'm joking. He's my friend."

Linda McGough said the two sometimes can get lost in their own little world when they are together. She is thankful that Palko and his father treat McGough like everyone else, and they don't just give him a pass when he messes up.

This point is driven home later when McGough, who had been eating an energy bar, tried to give the wrapper to his mom to hold. Palko quickly interjected, "See that garbage can in there? Take your lazy butt over there and throw it away yourself."

"OK, Tyler," responded Chris, then he quickly followed instructions.

"It is really helpful to have that kind of interaction from other people," said Steve McGough. "Bob and Tyler have been there to give him guidance, to teach him the right way to deal with people and how to conduct himself. It has really been helpful because they've never babied him, and he's much better off because of it."

McGough, who goes to all of Pitt's home games with his father, has learned at least one other thing from Palko, who is notoriously competitive.

"He doesn't take losses very well at all," said Linda.

Then, she points toTyler and adds, "But, then again, he's had a great teacher."

McGough said he enjoys working with all the teams, but admits that sometimes it gets "boring" because he wants to be able to go out on the field and compete himself. He said football is his favorite sport, but he enjoys baseball as well.

Playing a varsity sport isn't really possible because of his condition, but he bowls with theWest Allegheny bowling team and competes in Special Olympics as well.

And a couple of weeks ago, he realized at least one of his dreams when West Allegheny baseball coach Bryan Cornell had McGough bat in an exhibition game atShady Side Academy.

West Allegheny led the game going into the bottom of the seventh inning and forced three quick Shady Side outs to officially end the game. Rather than shake hands and leave, the Shady Side players took the field, and McGough led off the top of the eighth.

To the delight of everyone, McGough hit a pitch over the third baseman's head and ran the bases. Shady Side's players tossed the ball around and allowed him to run all the way around and slide into the plate for an unofficial home run.

"We've had Chris with us since he was in ninth grade, and I've wanted to get him an at-bat because I knew it would be a thrill for him," said Cornell, a special education teacher at the school who has worked closely with McGough over the past three years. "Earlier this year, I had mentioned something to [Shady Side coach Bob Grandazio] about it, and he said 'let's do it.' "

"Even though it was somewhat staged, it is still an amazing feat. The Shady Side kids did a great job of going along with it. It was something very special to see all those teenagers rooting for Chris and cheering him on. And then to see how excited he was to really feel a part of the team, that's what its all about if you ask me."

Cornell, one of the board members of the TC House Foundation, said McGough takes batting practice every day and is fairly athletic, so it wasn't a shock that he hit the ball, although he didn't expect McGough to hit it out of the infield.

Bob Palko said he'd love to have Chris run the football in a game this fall. He said he will talk to other coaches and see if they can work something out.

"It would have to be when one team has the game in control," Palko said. "But I'd love to do it for Chris. I know there might be some who might criticize it, saying that it goes against the rules of competition, but that's silly. We are here to provide an education for these kids, to raise them to become good citizens and to respect each other and care about each other, but not everything they learn comes in a classroom.

"If people could see how much something as simple as that means to a kid with a disability like Chris, and how it impacts the players around him in a positive way, they'd understand.

"And I'll tell you this -- we, all of us, teachers, coaches, students, we've all learned as much about life, about what's important, from Chris as we've taught him. I mean, whatever we've supposedly given to him, believe me, he's given back ten-fold."

Palko might be able to get McGough into a game but, when he does, he might have to alter his plans and allow him to take the snap from center and throw the ball, rather than line up at tailback and run it.

That's because McGough has different ideas about what position he wants to play.

"I'm a quarterback," McGough said, then smiled. "Just likeTyler."