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Former WCI student honoured for his courageous battle against cancer A true warror will be honâ€" oured for his defining victory this weekend, and no it‘s not a member of the University of Waterloo football team. Former Waterloo collegiate institute student Mark Fischer was recently chosen to receive the $1,000 Spiritual Warrior Scholarship from the Hopeâ€" Spring Cancer Support Centre for his essayâ€"style description of his courageous battle, and hopeful defeat, against a brain tumor which struck him over five years ago. He will be presented with the award Saturday night as part of the fourth annual Hopeâ€" Spring Celebrate and Educate dinner, to be held at Manulife Financial in Waterloo. Fischer is not only the first male to receive this honour; he is the first cancer survivor to be awarded the scholarship. "This was a great surprise," said the 20â€"yearâ€"old Conestoga College marketing student. "It Mark Fischer, a former WCI student, will be honored Saturday night as the recipient of the annual HopeSpring Cancer Care Centre‘s Spiritual Warrior Scholarship. Fischer is not only the first male to receive the honour; he is the first cancer survivor to win the award. Kip cy® Experience total relaxation at the most relaxed prices of the season! Lazboy [E ®**Z * Pz p KA EcaataStic§ih = Che&€ ‘ 2A k 22 e imngP _ e fsav“ s 799 m'm,_' P - 469 :unwuuc Andrea Bailey Chronicle Staff aterloo‘ "But 1 don‘t consider myself extra special in any way I think I‘m fortunate, but 1 wouldn‘t say courageous." really comes in handy, college is not cheap 0 Others would beg to differ with Fischer‘s selfâ€"perception. "Mark _ is _ extremely resilient," said Susan Hill, the head of WCI‘s special educaâ€" tion department. "He had to grow up very quickly through many trials and tribulations." In June of 1994, at the end of his Grade 9 year, Fischer was diagnosed with a rare form of tumor which, doctors told him, only affects about one person in southern Ontario each year. "You hear the word ‘cancer‘ and you automatically think of your own mortality." â€"Mark Fischer "I had been having constant muld headaches for quite a while," he said. "They put me on antibiotics, but that didn‘t help. "The doctors came up with a number of other reasons for the headaches, but then found out for sure that it was a tumor." Being only 15 years old at the time, this information was not only hard for Fischer to accept; it was hard for him to understand. "I didn‘t think much of anyâ€" thing at first," he said. "I had never even heard of the term ‘malignant‘. But once I talked about it with my parents, and made the connection, that‘s when it sunk in that 1 had canâ€" Almost immediately after the diagnosis, Fischer began both radiation and chemotherapy treatment to combat the il}â€" "It‘s something I wouldn‘t wish on anyone," he said. "But it also gave me some good lessons in life." (Continued on page 4) O3 Andres Bailey photo He may have lost the battle, but one Waterloo region disâ€" trict school board trustee feels he won the war Monday night in his attempt to have a controâ€" versial play restricted from all board schools. Norman Eby, a school trustee representing Camâ€" bridge, approached fellow board members at a committee of the whole meeting with a motion to ban the play "Live, On Stage, Uncensored!", statâ€" ing there is too much sexual exploitation and inappropriate behavior taking place on stage. Though his motion was defeated by a 7â€"4 vote, Eby felt his point was wellâ€"taken. "I would have preferred the decision to go the other way," he said. "But there is a silver lining to this. Parents are now aware of things that are going on in the schools." Eby said he was surprised at the number of parents and Controversial play gets school board nod The big red elf visited Waterloo this year for the first time last Saturday much to the delight of the more than 200 children who waited for him at Conestoga Mall. Santa took time out to visit with his special friend Jordan Hurley, 10, above. Andrea Bailey ; Chronicle Staff * Santa sighting at Conestoga Maill trustees alike in attendance who were not aware their chilâ€" dren had already seen this play. "Many of them weren‘t notiâ€" fied about this," he said, "and a few only found out at the meeting that their children have already seen the play. "The main issue is we wouldn‘t allow the behaviot shown in the play to take place in our classrooms, so why would we allow it to take place in our assemblies." According to a press release from the board, the play in question, which is being preâ€" sented by the Elmira District Secondgry School Youth Playâ€" ers, deals with sex and abstiâ€" nence, responsibility and respect. It is a sponsored effort by Planned Parenthood of Waterloo Region and funded by the Kaufman Foundation and the Trillium Foundation In the 1998â€"99 school year, it was viewed by about 6,000 young people in Grades 8â€"10, teachets, parents, principals and community members, Gallery Dependable service since 1959 46 King St. N., Waterloo 886â€"2040 CLOSED SUNDAY AND MONDAY TUESDAY â€" THURSDAY 9â€"5:30 FREE ¢ ‘{/(KI .(/i:iyéy s PARKING AT FRONT & REAR OF STORE with the feedback reported as being "extremely positive". . Board chairman John Hendry agreed in some ways certain issues portrayed in the play may not be the most appropriate, for example the language used, but he said with the change in times comes a change in attitude. "This is a new day and a new age," he said. "I think students are more inclined to listen to their peers than the adults on these kinds of issues. "By presenting the issues this way," Eby said, Though it received support this week, the play is still subâ€" ject to approval by the board at a meeting Nov. 29. "If the teens are getting the right message through the play, I think it‘s a good idea." _Eby took quite an opposite "I feel they are being preâ€" sented in a joking manner, which then encourages behavâ€" ior of this kind. The whole thing is in bad taste." NBrrHN uirerrclutre Zâ€"BOY® Limest