Colorado women’s basketball signs 6-year-old battling leukemia to letter of intent
Colorado Buffaloes head coach JR Payne and her team have added a new member to their squad. One that has already had a profound impact.
Wednesday night, in front of a crowded room, six-year-old Bellamy Korn signed a national letter of intent to play for the No. 11 ranked Colorado Buffaloes. “We haven’t quite decided if she’s going to be a point guard like Kindyll [Wetta] or a post player like Charlotte [Whittaker], but the one thing that we know is that Bellamy will be the toughest little lady out there.”
Bellamy has been battling leukemia since March of last year.
“It's been difficult. It's been really lonely. It's been really isolating," Bellamy’s mom, Sarah Bailey, told Denver7 News. "She's been kicking cancer's booty though. She's been doing a great job staying healthy, staying active, taking her meds and having a really positive attitude.”
Wednesday night’s event was made possible by Team IMPACT, a non-profit that “matches children facing serious illness and disability with college sports teams.
“In the middle of a chaotic basketball season where it’s high stress, high stakes, everything feels just so critical, to be able to spend time like this with Bellamy and her family means everything,” Payne told the Denver Gazette. “Basketball is high stakes, it’s fun, it’s competitive, it’s all of that, but in the grand scheme of things, this means more than any game we could play.”
Not only did Bellamy become an honorary member of the Buffaloes Wednesday evening, but she was also honored with her own number five jersey.
“It's a core memory for me for sure...This team is life-changing for us," Bailey said.
The Buffaloes next head to Los Angeles to face No. 7 USC on Friday and No. 12 UCLA on Monday. On Thursday, February 29, Bellamy will be an honorary starter for CU’s Play4Kay Cancer Awareness Game against Washington.
