Liam McGourty: A boy, his dog and his favorite baseball team

BOSTON — On the surface, it may appear to be a story you've heard before: a young child fighting a life-threatening disease paired up with a college squad through Team IMPACT.  

Fourth grader Liam McGourty has been part of Northeastern's baseball team since 2012.

"Obviously for all of us, it's a great thing," said Northeastern first baseman Jake Farrell. "We love when Liam comes out. It's great to have him here and supporting us. It just means a lot to us that we can help him out and be a part of his life and let him know what it's like to feel like a part of a team."

Liam is battling Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a ravaging disease that attacks his muscles.

"They're not as strong as other people's are," said Liam as we chatted in his living room.

"It is 100% fatal and life expectancy is roughly early-20s," said Liam's dad, Jeff.

Liam recently lost some mobility, confining him to a wheelchair. His family, through the financial support of many friends and strangers, was able to purchase a high-tech ride called, "Liam's Green Monster."  Green is Liam's favorite color.

"Because it's the color of spring," said Liam. "Everything looks so nice."

When the Huskies welcome teams to their home field in Brookline, Liam and his family are typically in the front row along third base - his mom, Kristen, his dad, Jeff and his sister, Abigail - settled near their personalized seats cheering the red and black.

"His little voice is very distinct," said Northeastern third baseman Nolan Lang. "You hear him saying, 'C'mon strike 'em out,' or 'C'mon get a hit.'

Contrary to what I may have heard, Liam apparently does not razz the opposing team, despite sitting right next to their on-deck circle.

"Because you're supposed to be nice to them," said Liam.

The little guy in the Green Monster has received plenty of kindness in return, from hundreds of people. He's been to more than 40 Red Sox games. He's met the biggest of big names, snapping pictures every step of the way - Big Papi, Hanley, Mookie, Bill Belichick, TB12 and Gronk among them.

"I grew up with Sam Kennedy and Theo Epstein," said Jeff McGourty. "Once we got Liam's diagnosis they said, 'Anything you want,' so whenever he wants to go to a game I just make a phone call."

In 2016, the McGourtys decided that Liam needed a service dog and after working with the group "Golden Opportunities for Indpendence," or GOFI for almost a year, the perfect pooch was finally born - an English Golden Retriever that was green.

"We couldn't believe it," said Jeff. "We were just blown away."

When there's a green dog and Liam's favorite color is green, there's little doubt destiny is involved. Liam immediately fell in love with the dog and called him, "Fenway."

The green tint in Fenway's fur, a result of green bile pigment in his mother's placenta, faded with time. While going through training to work with Liam as a service dog, Fenway had to be housed outside the McGourty's home.

Nolan Lang is a senior from Orlando, FL, who not only is a good third baseman but also an animal lover. Lang had a big idea to help out his littlest fan.

"We ran Liam's 5-K, 'Liam's Leep,' in October," said Farrell. "Nolan was talking to the people from GOFI and honestly one thing led to another and Nolan said, 'You know, we're gonna get the dog.'"

"At first I was kind of apprehensive," said Jeff McGourty. "With the amount of stuff that they have to go through between work and sports and all that - to raise a puppy's not easy."

"He was very concerned because we are college kids and we have a busy schedule," said Lang. "He just wanted to make sure everything is ok and that we could take on the responsibility but since then I think he would say we've done a good job."

Throughout the fall and winter, it's the boys of summer who've been taking care of Fenway.

"We go to trainings once a week," said Lang. "And we do day-to-day training, just reinforcing what he learns. Just making sure he knows how to be a good dog and when he's ready to go to Liam's he knows what to do."

With Liam about to turn 11-years-old, it was time for a birthday party, so a group of us gathered at the McGourty house in Norwood for pizza and cake.

I brought along with me 12 green balloons along with a red balloon and black balloon to represent the Northeastern baseball squad. We sang "Happy Birthday" and laughed in the kitchen as Fenway chimed in on the final notes with a well-timed bark and howl.

"Why did Fenway go, 'Whoooo,'" chimed Liam.

It recalls a quote from earlier in the story, when Liam referenced his muscles.

"They're not as strong as other people's are."

Liam certainly wasn't talking about the most important muscle in the body - his heart.

"He keeps us all going," said Jeff. "His baby sister is remarkable, too. I have to give props to Abigail. Man does she love her older brother. She adores him so much."

The financial struggle is real for the McGourtys, who live on the second floor of a two-family home in Norwood, which makes it difficult to function given Liam's growing lack of mobility. They are actively seeking a new home that can be modified to Liam's needs.

A GoFundMe page has been established for costs medical insurance won't cover - and there are many.

While Jeff acknowledges Liam's condition is "100% fatal," its important to remember all of our lives are 100% fatal. No one is promised tomorrow. One of my favorite mottos is really appropriate here.

"It's not the years in your life that matter, it's the life in your years."

Liam, and a lot of people surrounding him, is proof of that.

Cox Media Group