Jim Valvano remembered 31 years after his death at Pack’s ‘Victory Over Cancer’ game

Joe Moore will never forget April 28, 1993.

That was the day Jim Valvano died of cancer. Moore lost a friend that day. He also lost a patient.

Moore was Valvano’s oncologist in the last year of his life, guiding the former N.C. State basketball coach through the worst of times that Moore said Valvano somehow could turn into the best of times with his humor, his bravery, his zest for a life he realized would soon end.

“There would be occasional times when he wouldn’t be as ebullient, but he never lost his focus of trying to get better and get well,” Dr. Moore said Sunday in an N&O interview. “He was quite a character. I know I had a lot of respect for him through the whole illness.”

The creation of the V Foundation for Cancer Research was first announced by Valvano during his emotional speech at the ESPYs, not long before he died in 1993. The speech is shown each year by ESPN, which has continued to support the foundation.

“His speech still knocks me over,” Moore said.

Moore retired from Duke Cancer Institute two years ago, but serves on the V Foundation board of directors and its Scientific Advisory Board. He said the organization has donated more than $300 million for cancer research.

Moore made his way to N.C. State’s Doak Field on Sunday, April 28, chosen to be one of those making a ceremonial first pitch as the Wolfpack beat Ball State 11-3 to sweep the three-game series. It was the Pack’s first “Victory Over Cancer” game, which was held to raise funds to benefit pediatric cancer research.

Former Wolfpack baseball star Trea Turner and his wife, Kristen, a former Pack gymnast, are a part of the effort, their cancer fund working through the V Foundation to help the initiative.

The Turners, like many, were inspired by Valvano’s “Never give up, don’t ever quit” attitude, by his ESPY speech, by his determination to develop further awareness about the disease.

“It may not save my life. It may save my children’s lives. It may save someone you love,”Valvano said on the ESPYs.

One of Valvano’s daughters, Jamie, later was a cancer survivor.

“It was almost prescient, what he said,” Moore said. “But he was always looking out for other people. That’s one of the things I took away from caring for him.

“Sports are great and of course Jim Valvano raised the bar for that well before he got sick. One of the things, in thinking about him throughout his illness and into the creation of the foundation, he was always teaching, he really was. Most of the things he said to people around him, not just me but other doctors and nurses, and the people who took care of him, he literally was coaching them.”

Valvano coached the Pack to the 1983 NCAA championship, through a run in which the terms “Survive and advance” and “Cardiac Pack” entered the college basketball lexicon. Another Wolfpack coaching legend, Kay Yow, died of cancer in 2009.

Avent said he would propose that all ACC schools and others in the state put a “Victory Over Cancer” game on their future baseball schedules. It would be much like the annual Play4Kay games throughout women’s basketball that benefit the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.

It was announced that Sunday’s game raised $46,759. Avent said this past week that more than $80,000 already had been donated.

The Pack players wore gold uniforms for the inaugural game, with the players’ names on the back replaced by motivational words or the names of those suffering from cancer — pitcher Carson Kelly wore “Fighter.”

Avent has a nephew, Shane, is who 8 years old and fighting brain cancer. There were plenty of “Team Shane” shirts seen at Doak Field and Shane joined the coach for the postgame media interview, saying the day was “cool.”

“This is something we wanted to get started, we got it started and I think it was a huge success because we put it together in a short period of time,” Avent said Sunday.

Avent said one downer from the weekend was an injury to rightfielder Josh Hogue on Saturday. Hogue suffered a fractured leg after a collision in the outfield, Avent said, will need surgery and will be out for four months.

“That was devastating to me,” Avent said. “It really hit me hard.”

Moore, 79, retired after working at Duke since 1975 and once was referred to an “oncology Jedi” by one colleague. His work with the V Foundation continues to raise more funds for cancer research.

“I know what Jim would say – ‘Y’all have done a great job but it’s just not enough. So keep working,’ “ Moore said, smiling.