Cam Newton mourns death of NC teen he met through Make-A-Wish

Cam Newton first met North Carolina teen Matthew Bailey through Make-A-Wish last spring after he learned that throwing a football with him was on his bucket list of top ten things to do. When Bailey, 14, passed away on Feb. 12 at Levine’s Children’s Hospital after a year-long battle with an aggressive form of brain cancer, the Panthers quarterback was especially moved.

 

Thankful to have had the opportunity to meet Matthew in his short time here. An amazing kid with an incredible heart. LET US NOT TAKE FOR GRAN1T L1FE.... AND THE PEOPLE THAT MAY COME iN OUR L1FE's!!! Special thanks to @makeawish_cwnc and Matthew's family for giving me the opportunity to have met Matthew! RESTinPEACE my man and let your brave&infectious HEART be contagious and an iNSP1RATiON in THIS WOR1DtoEVERY1! #carpeD1EM -1OVE

A photo posted by Cam Newton (@cameron1newton) on Feb 20, 2015 at 6:39am PST

Matthew and his family excitedly tweeted about meeting Newton last May.

I just had lunch with Cam Newton🏈 pic.twitter.com/NuPYcoXImJ

— Matthew Bailey (@mattbailey369) May 1, 2014

What a surprise. Couldn't have been any nicer to us all. Cam Newton fan for life. @CameronNewton pic.twitter.com/gZopsPQ70A

— Nick Bailey (@nick_t_bailey) May 1, 2014

"He sat and spent quality time with Matthew and his family," Joel Settle, Bailey's pastor at Watermark Church, said of the meeting. "It wasn't just a photo op, he didn't come in and pat him on the back. Don, Matthew's father, said about Cam Newton that nobody could have been better for my son than Cam Newton in that moment."

In addition to meeting Newton for lunch, Bailey also got to meet Coach K and Tim Tebow.

Newton has shown a tremendous appreciation for life since his December car crash that left him with two small fractures in his lower back.