Medfield Basketball Player Honored By Sports Illustrated
MEDFIELD (CBS) - Jack Cadigan is a senior guard on Medfield High School's basketball team, but his real story begins in Haiti.
About two years ago, Jack was joining his dad, a cardiologist who was volunteering at a clinic. His father, who's also named Jack, needed to test an EKG machine and just happened to hook up his son.
"I was horrified inside and maybe I showed it a little to him and he asked me how he was and I said, 'I think you're OK,'" Dr. Cadigan said. "But I knew he wasn't."
It turned out Jack had a life threatening hole in his heart.
"I saw a face of worry on his face and I didn't know what to make of it," Jack said. "And I said 'Dad is everything all right?' And he said 'Yeah everything is fine.'"
After getting back to the states, Jack had surgery at Mass. General. After a long recovery he is now completely healthy.
So many things had to happen to make Jack Cadigan well enough to play in the basketball game Tuesday night. It's like he has a second chance at life, and he's not the only one.
"About a month after my surgery we found out about a young girl down in Haiti who came to the same clinic my Dad and I were at," Jack said.
Lourdina Chery had the same condition and only about a month after his own operation, Jack told his surgeon, Dr. Tom MacGillivray about Lourdina. The doctor agreed to operate on her for free and now she too is healthy and thriving.
Now Jack Cadigan is being honored by Sports Illustrated as their High School Athlete of the Month.
"I'm very proud of Jack," Dr. Cadigan said. "It just seemed like there was something pre-ordained. Jack got saved but then Lourdina who's this young girl got saved."
"I think it was meant to be," Jack said. "It's just an amazing occurrence and it's a miracle."
