The Palouse community has Riley Sorenson’s back

Washington State football fans may be familiar with the tenacious playing style of former Cougars offensive lineman Riley Sorenson on the gridiron.

But to those who personally know the standout student-athlete, Sorenson is as intimidating as a stuffed animal.

“I think that a lot of people who have met Riley have really loved him and enjoyed spending time with him because he’s such a big teddy bear,” said Courteney Fisher, a friend of Sorenson and a graduate of Oregon. “He’s a huge guy, but he’s always been incredibly nice. When you meet someone like that who’s good at football, it kind of resonates with you.”

Sorenson’s kind-hearted nature is one reason why the Pullman community is rallying behind the former Cougar yet again after news broke of his cancer recurrence on June 22.

The Washington State standout was initially diagnosed with testicular cancer in the summer of 2016, just weeks after his mother lost her own battle with cancer and five months after his father passed away from a heart attack.

Sorenson successfully completed chemotherapy treatments and returned to Martin Stadium in the fall for his senior season to reinforce an offensive line that helped lead the Cougars to an 8-5 record and an appearance in the Holiday Bowl against Minnesota on national television.

But during a June 10 exam, doctors found an abdominal tumor, which signaled recurrence of the disease. Sorenson began the first of four chemotherapy treatments on June 26, according to a Facebook post from his girlfriend, Elisabeth Haffner.

“The prognosis is good,” Haffner wrote in the social media post. “Testicular cancer has a very high survival and cure rate. We are trying to remain positive, and are optimistic and hopeful while we look ahead and prepare for the months to come.”

The news encouraged Fisher to research fundraising avenues for the couple. After speaking with Sorenson and Haffner, she opted to create a GoFundMe page to help pay for medical bills, travel expenses and other costs associated with the cancer treatment.

“They weren’t really comfortable with it when I first brought it up,” Fisher said. “Riley said he didn’t want to bring attention toward another tough story of his because he’s so positive and self-determined. I had to tell him that people wanted to hear his story and help, because there a lot of people who are incredibly kind and selfless.”

Sorenson eventually relented and suggested a campaign mark of $1,000, but Fisher said she listed the initial goal at $10,000.

“Even though that would reflect generosity from a lot of people, I thought it was really low for their situation,” Fisher said. “There’s so many costs associated with bills, travel for chemo treatments and other things insurance doesn’t cover.”

After creating the GoFundMe webpage June 23, Fisher awoke the next morning to find the campaign had already surpassed its goal.

“I was honestly shocked that we raised as much as we did,” Fisher said. “I thought it would probably take about a month. People will just scroll by things like that on social media and not even take five seconds to read a post like that.”

Fisher reached out to Haffner about raising the mark and the pair decided to set a maximum amount of $30,000.

“We capped it there because that’s a lot of money, so we won’t go any higher unless the medical bills are more than that,” Fisher said. “We want to donate any leftover money that they don’t use toward a cancer research foundation or something like that.”

As of Sunday evening, the campaign had collected $20,850 through a combined 239 donations, with many of those coming from Palouse residents and Washington State alumni.

“I think the Cougar community has gone above and beyond,” Fisher said. “I’ve never actually been to Pullman, but from what Elisabeth tells me, it sounds like they completely feel at home there.”

Sorenson is currently undergoing chemotherapy treatments in Lewiston, but he released a joint statement with Haffner on the GoFundMe page earlier in the week.

“We are overwhelmed and humbled by all the love and support we have received these past few days,” Sorenson and Haffner said in the statement. “Please know that even if we are unable to thank you individually, we are grateful beyond words.”

Those interested in contributing to the cause can donate at www.gofundme.com/help-support-riley-sorenson.