A young permanent Polish volunteer for the upcoming WYD lost his battle to cancer on July 2nd, and will now be cheering on his fellow volunteers and pilgrims from Above. He joined the WYD graphic design team in December of 2014 and found out the news of his cancer 10 months later, in September 2015.
On the 100 day anniversary of learning about his illness, he made a video, thanking his family, friends and doctors for their love, support and prayers.
MACIEJ SZYMON CIESLA WYD Volunteer
'I would like to thank each and every one of you. Especially my colleagues from Organizing Committee of World Youth Day. Thank you for every prayer and every mass, for every request directed to God so that He intervenes and fixes what went wrong. Thank you for every visit, call, message, for every warm thought.'
The WYD team was intensely praying for and supporting him throughout his treatment, including his decision to amputate his leg in June. The Polish volunteer fought with all his strength to combat the illness, but nothing seemed to work.
MACIEJ SZYMON CIESLA WYD Volunteer
'The only thing I can promise is that I'll do everything I can to win this battle. I will do everything to destroy this cancer. I really want to live and I'll survive, Scout's promise.â?
While he wasn't able to live out his promise, he touched the lives of so many around him. In the final months, he mentioned how quickly one's life and priorities are changed when only given a little bit of time to live.
MACIEJ SZYMON CIESLA WYD Volunteer
'I wish all of you, that you enjoy your life. Every day is beautiful! Unfortunately, we often forget that by chasing irrelevant things.'
It was this positivity and simplicity that left an impression on those around him and will continue to impact all the WYD volunteers as they prepare for the encounter with an angel looking down on them from heaven.
