For those of you who do not know Bryan Kervin, he was a standout shortstop from Grapevine, Texas. Though his collegiate career initially began at the University of Arizona, Kervin made his way back home and ended up playing 3 years for the Horned Frogs. In his time here, he solidified the shortstop position while batting over .300 during his career from 2006-2008. His performance was good enough that he was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 27th round of the Major League Baseball draft and he advanced all the way up to their Double A system in the Minor Leagues.

But while that story sounds great, what most people do not know is what followed for Bryan and his family. In November of 2009, Kervin had stomach pains and aches, but what followed were months of serious suffering and major surgeries. He was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis, which is an inflammatory bowel disease that causes ulcers in the inner lining of the colon and rectum. This disease caused Kervin to have sharp stomach pains as if someone was stabbing him, vomit blood, fevers, increased heart rate, cold sweats, and eventually major surgeries that included a procedure to remove his colon. There were days where his family was unsure he would even survive, but survive he did.

During this process, he dropped from 188 to 135 pounds. I had a chance to see him at the Fort Worth Regional this year and it is remarkable to see a baseball player that was in great athletic shape change so much. That said, he was out and about and his demeanor looked like the same kid that patrolled shortstop for the Frogs. He still hopes to resume his career with the Blue Jays, but obviously faces a long road back.

It was at the Fort Worth Regional that I had a chance to talk to his father, Rick, and he shared the gut-wrenching story and you can tell the emotional toll it took on him and his family. As it turns out, Bryan is not the only one in his family to face Ulcerative Colitis as his older sister Rene had the disease too. If you have ever met their family, they are truly one of the nicest families to get to know and it is very easy to see that the strength and love they all have for one another is why they were able to overcome this.


In response to this disease, the Kervin family, with the help of their friend Jeremy Hughes, is trying to raise awareness and raise money for Ulcerative Colitis and Crohns Disease. To do so, they are going to have a concert in Grapevine, Texas and a Golf Tournament at Cowboys Golf Course. Now, I apologize for waiting so long to write this, but the benefit concert is this Sunday, July 11th with the golf tournament the following day on Monday, July 12th. I got so caught up in the run to Omaha that I forgot to put this on our web site and the date is pretty much here.

One thing I love about the TCU community is they rally around one another and treat everyone like family. In this case, Bryan truly is family. To have the courage to persevere the way he did is amazing and if we can help someone else avoid this disease that does not get the same type of attention as other diseases, we can do two great things at the same time. Even if you cannot attend, try to donate. And if you choose not to donate, pass this story on to others because as much as this is about raising money, it is also about raising awareness.

The website is Rise and Conquer and it is a well put together website that provides amazing background stories as well as information about the concert and the golf tournament.


Click here for the Rise and Conquer website


Also, if you have questions about how you can help, contact Jeremy Hughes at Jeremy.riseandconquer@gmail.com or by calling (214) 766-1898.

I personally appreciate your reading this and thank you for helping.