‘I’m so humbled by it’: CCU mascot scholarship honors alum fighting brain cancer
As Marc Gura lie awake on the operating table last year, surgeons dissecting his brain to remove a tumor the size of a business card, he told stories about his time as the Chanticleer mascot at Coastal Carolina University.
Gura’s time in the 1980s as the first student to serve as “Chauncey” were “some of the best four years of my life,” he said. Now, he’s being honored with a scholarship from the Coastal Educational Foundation as he traverses the daunting terrain of managing brain cancer.
The Marc Gura Coastal Carolina University Spirit Scholarship, through the Coastal Educational Foundation, is a $1,000 award to a full-time CCU student who also takes on the Chauncey persona, according to CCU spokesperson Jerry Rashid.
“I’m so humbled by it,” Gura said. “That’s really all I can say.”
From CCU student to proud Chauncey
When Gura arrived at Coastal, then USC Coastal Carolina College, in 1988, he says he didn’t have much athletic talent. But what he did have was plenty of spirit. He had a year of mascot experience under his belt after trying out for his high school cheer squad as a joke. Thanks to the cheer coach at his high school, he quickly found out it was no joke and became the mascot.
Coming into college, he thought being the mascot, or the ‘kickin’ chicken,” would suit him.
“I always like to give my all whenever I do something,” he told The Sun News.
He looks back on his time at CCU fondly, especially accompanying the men’s basketball on its run to the NCAA tournament in 1991, marking only the second time in school history Coastal had made it to March Madness.
Cancer diagnosis and tumor resection
Come June 2020, Gura had raised two children and was settled in North Carolina. In photos from his daughter’s high school graduation, his wife noticed something was off. The left side of his face was drooping.
He had other warning signs, too. Things began to taste like Splenda, he said, and he felt pressure on his eyes.
Soon after, doctors told him he had glioblastoma, an aggressive form of cancer that can occur in the brain or spinal cord. Gura had a 5-centimeter tumor on the frontal lobe of his brain.
News of the cancer came as a “total surprise,” Gura said. His symptoms were rare, stumping some doctors before reaching a diagnosis.
Two and a half weeks later, Gura was on the operating table, awake and alert, telling stories about his time as Chauncey while the doctors asked him questions and performed a craniotomy, opening the skull to assess his brain and remove the tumor.
Support systems get CCU alum through cancer
But Gura found ways to remain in good spirits. He has a strong support system in his wife and children, and his faith has strengthened since doctors first found the tumor 18 months ago.
He also finds inspiration in what may be an unlikely source: the 15-year-old daughter of a friend of Gura’s. She has the same type of cancer as Gura, and the two seek solace in each other.
“One thing I can say about Fallon is that I can proudly fight this like a girl,” he said.
Gura has also channeled his array of emotions toward his cancer diagnosis into words. He wrote and self-published a children’s book titled “Thoughtful’s Unwelcome Guest Must Go.” It explores the process of being diagnosed with cancer and removing tumors.
“I thought, ‘What would it be like for kids or somebody who’s never experienced this?’” Gura said.
Gura has begun physical therapy and continues to undergo chemotherapy and drug infusions to try to stave off the cancer.
The scholarship in honor of Gura was started by an anonymous donor, and the first award will likely be handed out during the 2023-24 school year. Recipients of the award will be chosen based on an essay on why they became a Chanticleer mascot and their ability to meet GPA and enrollment requirements. Students can receive the one-year scholarship more than once during their time at CCU.
This story was originally published December 10, 2021 at 2:11 PM.
