NIAGARA FALLS — Nothing about Anthony Braham’s boyish smile leads you to believe he’s suffering. Or has ever suffered.

Braham smiles. Consistently. To the point where it’s hard to fathom that this Niagara Falls High School senior was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease at 12 years old. Or is currently on a waiting list for a kidney transplant, hoping to get enough energy to again run with his Wolverine classmates.

Or that just a dozen days ago he lost someone he often refers to as “more of a best friend” — his mother — to a surprising bout with pneumonia.

Now, Braham’s tale has become the rallying cry of Western New York’s largest high school, making him an improbable hero at a place that’s watched a seemingly endless stream of professional and college sports stars walk the halls the past decade.

Jonny Flynn, Paul Harris and James Starks all have superior talent. But in dealing with an excruciating set of circumstances, and rarely allowing the smile to slip from his face, Braham has proven he’s got at least as much heart as the greatest athletes the school has ever produced.

Starting young

Braham started with the Niagara Falls Cataract football program at the age of eight, taking up the sport because it looked like fun. He quit in middle school, then decided to tryout for the high school team his freshman year. He missed the deadline for physicals, and worked out in preparation for his sophomore year, when he practiced with the guys he currently calls teammates.

At 5-foot-2 and 135 pounds, Braham wasn’t exactly imposing, but he had good speed.

“At that time I wasn’t getting tired,” he said. “So it was easy to play.”

Braham had lived relatively symptom-free after learning about Crohn’s Disease at an early age. He was first diagnosed after a series of episodes in which the debilitating intestinal condition surfaced.

“Whenever I would use the bathroom, it was painful. My stomach would rumble,” he said.

Although Crohn’s is never cured, medicine and a smart diet helped him avoid major symptoms. The disease is known to stunt the growth of children, however, and since Braham didn’t sprout, it’s probable the disease affected him.

But Braham insisted it was nothing he couldn’t handle.

“My Crohn’s is fine,” he said. “I have to go in once a month and they ask me all the same questions. And I say the same thing — I feel great.”

Later, though, Braham started to tire quickly and tests unveiled another battle — this time with failing kidneys. He was put on the United Network of Organ Sharing list, and has been waiting patiently ever since. His kidneys are currently working at about 15 percent of their full capacity.

And not surprising, Braham wasn’t able to keep up with teammates he used to stay stride for stride with.

“I started getting tired pretty quickly,” he said. “When I started running again, I’d end up with all the fat people. And I wanted to be with the faster people. I used to be quicker.”

With the Wolverines

Although he couldn’t play any longer, Niagara Falls football coach Don Bass still wanted Braham involved with the program.

“He had some medical conditions, but we wanted him to be a part of a team,” Bass said. “He became a manager this year. He was the cameraman, he did the water — whatever we asked. His selfless acts were numerous. He inspired the team and the team rallied around him.

“You would never know he had a condition. He’s an amazing young man.”

Bass decided to nominate Braham for the High School Football Rudy Awards, named after the legendary Daniel Ruettiger who was made famous by the motion picture, “Rudy.”

The Wolverines had a successful season, finishing 4-3 before getting eliminated in the first round of the Section VI Class AA playoffs by top-seeded Lancaster. Braham spent the day in the press box, taking film of the game, helping the Lancaster public address announcers and local media with tidbits about the team.

“I thought it was the best season we’ve had since 2005,” Braham said. “Everyone just wanted to win. They weren’t in it for themselves.”

His best friend, linebacker Jalen Gayle, ended up with 79 tackles and was a repeat Niagara Gazette all-Crunch selection. Although he didn’t play a down, Braham was very much a part of the team.

More tragedy

His mother, taking a cue from Bass, penned the following excerpt for the Web site where friends could vote for Braham.

“Let me introduce you to my hero, my son Anthony,” Kathy Braham wrote. “During all of his medical issues, he has continued to be active in his favorite sport, football. He shows up for every practice and has not missed a game. Anthony does not complain about how tired he is or about how many medications he has to take while waiting for a kidney transplant. ... That is why I am very proud of my hero, my son Anthony.”

But soon after she wrote of her son’s medical problems, Kathy Braham started dealing with a cold she couldn’t shake. Anthony and an aunt eventually took her to the hospital, and soon after, at just 34, she died of pneumonia.

When he speaks of the loss, Braham seems dumbfounded.

“She had a cold for a few weeks,” he said. “We took her to the hospital that Saturday. They said she had pneumonia. And that was it.”

Although he had been getting numerous votes before her death, the support for Braham has increased ten-fold ever since. As of Thursday night, he had nearly 45,000 votes for the awards at www.highschoolrudyawards.com. Administrators and friends stop him in the halls at Niagara Falls to say his picture is on every computer.

Bass, for one, isn’t surprised.

“He’s one of those kids that you would be proud to have as your son. He’s an absolutely wonderful kid,” Bass said. “The district has rallied around him, voting for him every hour. Everything that comes his way, he doesn’t flinch. His courage, commitment, character and contribution is incredible. He’s just an amazing, amazing young man.

“There is no more deserving young man in the nation than him.”

If Braham wins the award, he’ll receive a scholarship he’ll put toward athletic training classes at Niagara County Community College in the fall. Although Braham can’t run — “my ankles swell up when I do” — he hopes to either become a trainer with a professional sports team or a gym teacher.

Even though life keeps dealing him setbacks, Braham remains unfazed.

And smiling.

“I don’t have a secret. You’ve just got to try to be better each day,” he said. “I can’t play, but I’m going to do something related to sports.

“I just don’t think about it. And I go with the flow.”

Contact sports editor Tim Schmitt at 282-2311, ext. 2266.



MORE ONLINE

National Rudy Awards

• Vote for Niagara Falls’ Anthony Braham by logging on to www.highschoolrudyawards.com, then click nominees by state. Voting closes on Nov. 30.