Remembering Will Hauver
By Lyndall Hauver (As Told to JDRF)
Today we are mourning the loss of our son, Will Hauver, who died earlier this month. Will was an amazing person. In 22 short years he touched so many and made the most incredible friendships and relationships with pretty much everyone he met. He was funny, so positive and had such a love for life. He was athletic, artistic, witty, kind, caring and tough.
Will was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D) at age 15 when he was a freshman in high school. Having diabetes did not hold him back in any way. He was a varsity athlete and played both squash and lacrosse. At Rollins College, he also played lacrosse and became a Captain his senior year. He was a good student, majoring in Communications with an Art minor. He did marketing for the school radio station and created covers for the school paper. He was just notified that he would graduate with honors in his major. Will was a gifted artist and he was a friend to everyone.
This past summer, Will was nominated to complete the ice bucket challenge for ALS awareness and donations. He created a very funny video and also created a challenge for JDRF and “LIVEabetes”. After Will passed away, his high school friends galvanized and are creating a movement to raise funds for JDRF by answering Will’s call and filming videos of themselves completing the “Egg Crack Challenge”. It is catching on quickly in just seven short days. Even Gerrard Sheppard, a graduate of the same high school as Will and a member of the Green Bay Packers, completed the “Will Hauver Egg Crack Challenge”. Dez Wells of the University of Maryland Basketball team also completed the challenge. All the videos are posted on social media and money is being donated to JDRF in Will’s honor. These donations will help JDRF create a world without type 1 diabetes and turn Type One into Type None.
Will had good control of his diabetes. He was diligent about his nutrition, kept his numbers in check and had no complications from the disease. He got the stomach flu and this was the very first time he had been ill since he was diagnosed with T1D. If we learn nothing from his senseless death, all of us who either have T1D or care for someone with T1D need to know this – Go to the ED or doctor when you have the stomach flu or any illness that causes you to become dehydrated. Please.
We would love to have this movement go viral to help raise money for JDRF and honor Will, so we are now challenging you. Upload your video to YouTube, Facebook, or Vine and be sure to use the hashtag #EggCrackChallenge when you do. See the following links to better understand our son’s incredible life, full of joy, humor and kindness. You can also follow the links to learn how to complete the “Will Hauver Egg Crack Challenge” and/or donate to JDRF.
Egg Crack Challenge: Will and Paige