Florida safety Reggie Nelson said recently he would give up football if he could ensure his mother would survive the breast cancer she had been battling since October 2003. Sadly, such a trade was not possible.

Mary Lakes died Thursday night, just after her son arrived at her Melbourne home following the second-ranked Gators' final pre-Christmas practice in Gainesville.

Lakes, whose illness prevented her from regularly witnessing the wonder of her All-American son -- a possible first-round draft pick -- was able to see Nelson play in September. And while she rarely got to sit in the stands, Lakes and Nelson had a very close relationship.

"Reggie had a special relationship with his mother," Florida coach Urban Meyer said. "She was a tremendous person and an inspiration for Reggie and many others. Our entire football program is deeply saddened and in mourning. We will remain by Reggie's side and provide emotional and spiritual support for him during this difficult time."

Nelson will soon head to Arizona where he and his Florida Gator teammates will take on the Ohio State Buckeyes for the 2007 National Championship title.

Just two months after her mother lost her battle with gall bladder cancer, Liane was diagnosed with breast cancer. It all happened earlier this year -- and while Liane is still mourning the loss of her mother, she is also still managing the madness of her own disease. Liane is surviving with courage, with determination, with the same powerful spirit that powered her mother's fight.

Liane lives in a small city -- population 43,000 -- in northern Alberta Canada. She has been happily married for 18 years and has two daughters, ages 13 and 15, and a golden retriever named Sunny. Liane loves to garden, cook, read, and spend time with family. She normally works full-time in a real estate and property management office but has been blessed with six months off for treatment. Liane is already -- without a doubt -- a survivor.

Ryder Cup golfer Darren Clarke lost his wife Heather to breast cancer last month. Clarke has not played competitively since July 21 when he took time off from golfing to care for his wife. Since her passing, Clarke has been thinking and regrouping and mourning the loss of his 39-year-old wife and mother of their two young sons. Now, he is ready to re-enter the world of golf. He is ready, he says, for the upcoming Ryder Cup.

Clarke says his game is good and while his decision to return to his sport was tough, he is returning only because he knows he can fully contribute. And he knows his wife would have wanted him to play so he made himself available for selection. Clarke could not have qualified automatically due to the time he took off to care for Heather but he was eligible to be selected -- and he was. Clarke is grateful and prepared for the challenge. "I am stronger altogether," he says. "I've had to face up a lot of tough things. I hope I've come through it a better person."

Regaining focus after losing a loved one to cancer is a tough thing for anyone. Last month Professional golfer Tiger Woods missed his first ever cut in a major championship at the US Open following the loss of his father Earl Woods to prostate cancer on May 3. Tiger regained his focus one month later to win the British Open today.

Mourning for someone you have cared for and loved is a necessary part of feeling better again and continuing with your own life. You will often experience emotions of intense sadness and despair, or it may be hard to believe that the person has really died. You may feel that crying is a sign of weakness, or that you are falling apart but grieving is the way we begin to heal ourselves, just as an injury needs time to heal.

With an emotional breakdown of tears on the finishing hole, Tiger Woods wept openly in the arms of his caddy Steve Williams. This was his first victory since his father's death and some critics questioned whether Woods could regain the focus needed to stay on top of the rankings in the professional golf world. Watching the British Open on television and seeing the final shot by Tiger filled my eyes with tears to know the pain this man felt while winning such a glorious title in golf without the presence of the father that has stood by him his whole career. But he regained his stance at the top of the world rankings and keeps the focus that was taught to him by his father Earl Woods.

"After the last putt, I realized my dad's never going to see this again, and I wish he could have seen this one last time," Woods said at the trophy presentation. "He was out there today keeping me calm. I had a very calm feeling the entire week, especially today."

Tiger Woods now has three British Open titles, the same as Jack Nicklaus, and his victory at Hoylake carried another comparison. The first major Nicklaus won after his father died in 1970 also was the British Open.