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Jimmy O’Neill Honored in Annual Turkey Trot



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Jimmy “The Crusher” O’Neill and Jim McVeigh.

While some people headed to Herald Square for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade last Thursday, others gathered on the boardwalk on Beach 126th Street to honor Jimmy “The Crusher” O’Neill, a 10-year-old local who has battled cancer for the last year and a half.

Over 500 people of all ages showed up for Rockaway Track Club’s annual “Turkey Trot,” a 5K marathon or walk in which the proceeds went towards supporting “the battle against childhood cancer.” 

Jimmy was diagnosed with Wilms’ tumor, a type of kidney cancer, in May 2021, which resulted in the surgical removal of one of his kidneys just three months after. He also received chemotherapy treatment until last November and was given “a clean bill of health” on Dec. 14, 2021, his ninth birthday. This allowed him to return to school at St. Francis de Sales for the first time since May 2021. 

Unfortunately, Jimmy discovered his tumor had returned in the same spot this past June, resulting in chemotherapy, additional surgery, and radiation therapy through the summer months at Cohen’s Children Hospital. 

Some of the younger runners cross the finish line.

While the last few months have been difficult for Jimmy, he was all smiles last Thursday and the O’Neill family is appreciative of the community’s support.

“This is amazing and overwhelming, and we can’t thank you guys enough,” Beth O’Neill said on behalf of Jimmy and the family. “Jimmy had a particularly tough week so this is just the icing on the cake for him.”

After an enthusiastic countdown from Jimmy, the runners took off and headed east for the 5K Marathon with the youngest runners leading the pack. Other participants walked at a steady pace behind the speed demons.

Among the earliest returnees to the finish line on Beach 126th Street were the marathon’s youngest runners followed by some of the seasoned adult runners. The 5K’s finishing top 10 was James Mercer, Sean Parchment, John Conroy, Logan Leahy, Billy Devlin, Patrick Vesey, Mary Edwards, Olivia Murry, Elle Riches, and Megan Youngberg, all of whom finished the marathon with a chip time under 22:35. 

The runners take off after Jimmy O’Neill’s countdown.

The results of the marathon, however, seemed to pale in comparison to the real event, which was the community’s outpouring of support for Jimmy O’Neill.

“It was a great turnout,” said Rockaway Track Club marathon organizer Jim McVeigh.

“This community is beyond our wildest dreams,” added Beth O’Neill. “You keep us going and we could not thank you enough.”

 

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