Dad Quiller is battling back (NY)

[rainbowgirl28]

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Quiller is battling back
Army coach fights cancer while cheering on sons 1 of 1 The Quiller family of West Point has strong track and field ties, especially in the pole vault. From left: Army coach Jerry Quiller and his sons, Rory and Robb.Times Herald-Record/KEN BIZZIGOT By Ken McMillan

Times Herald-Record
kmcmillan@th-record.com
June 12, 2007
West Point

Track and field has been very good to Jerry Quiller. It has provided him a coaching job for the better part of 40 years, the last dozen with Army.

It helped him meet his future bride, Sandy. It helped him raise three boys who have followed in their dad's footsteps and become track champions in their own right.

Quiller was certainly in his own element yesterday. It was a gorgeous afternoon at his home track, Shea Stadium, and he was eager to watch two of his boys, Rory and Robb, battle for spots in the Empire State Games after coming off championship pole vault performances over the weekend.

On Friday, Robb placed sixth in the small-school division at the state high school meet and Rory placed fourth at the NCAA Division I meet.

It wasn't easy getting from his car to the pole vault pit on the other side of the track, though. Quiller gripped a huge cushion with both hands as he moved gingerly, hunched over just a bit. He is two months removed from back surgery to remove the remnants of a cancerous tumor on his vertebrae and to repair the damage it left behind.

"I don't know whether I am into miracles or not,'' Quiller said last evening, "but I am sure into medicine and how well it's working. It sure has created miracles for some families and it has gotten a lot of people well.

It seems to be working well for me.''

THE DISCOVERY OF the cancer came quite by accident. Quiller jarred his back while riding an all-terrain vehicle at a cross country meet last September.

When the pain failed to subside after 10 days, the first consultation with a doctor resulted in a diagnosis of spinal arthritis. It wasn't until January when a MRI scan revealed a tumor that was pushing two of his vertebrae together and squeezing the nerves in between.

Twenty-five radiation treatments destroyed most of the tumor, but surgery was still required to help straighten out the damaged vertebrae. Four titanium rods have been screwed into place on the healthy vertebrae above and below the damaged area.

"My X-ray looks like I have two or three spiders in my back,'' Quiller said. "It looks like something the Army rangers would have to climb over to get over to the next option.''

The remaining portion of the tumor was also removed, and Quiller is anxiously awaiting scan results to see if he is cancer-free.

"(My doctor) thinks I might be one of the real lucky ones who had this deal and beat it to the punch,'' Quiller said, "because if it gets going, it happens pretty fast, and we must have just beat it.''

That would be great relief for a family that has gone through a lot in the last five months.

During the darkest days of his treatments, Jerry tried to hide the agony he was enduring from Robb, a junior at James I. O'Neill.

"If I was in deep pain or some kind of trouble, I would get into a different room than him,'' Jerry said. "I didn't want to see me like that.''

If Robb sought encouragement, Jerry would do so from behind a closed door.

"I could be upbeat through the door,'' he said. "Afterward, he would go to bed and you begin to wonder if you are going to make it, and you start thinking about that.''

HIS SONS' TRACK pursuits became a great diversion for Jerry. Robb qualified for the indoor state high school championships and finished eighth at 14 feet, 3 inches. Rory placed second at the NCAA indoor meet and finally topped 18 feet.

"A new (personal record) "¦ not only does that feel great to me,'' Robb said, "but I think it's also feels great knowing that I am making my dad proud because I think he might enjoy it a bit more than I do. ... I know I can brighten my mom and dad's day by vaulting better.''

Rory said he was taken aback by the outpouring of support for his father, who is well-known throughout track and field circles nationwide after stops at Colorado State, Colorado, Wayne State and Idaho State.

"I go to meets,'' Rory said, "and people ask how my dad is doing. You can't get that respect by vaulting high or being a good decathlete â€â€

[Vaultref]

If I may speak on behalf of ALL the West Point track and field officials, we do hope and pray that Coach Quiller makes a full recovery. We've known him, his wife Sandy and three sons Ryan, Rory and Robb for a long time.
One would be hard pressed to find such a nice family anywhere.
He was missed at the meets this year.