Football jersey of North Attleboro teen who died of cancer retired in emotional ceremony

The football jersey of a North Attleboro teen who died following a courageous battle with cancer was retired in an emotional ceremony Saturday.

Holding hands and with tears in their eyes, Leo Larocque’s proud parents and younger brother were presented with a commemorative jersey as his number, 9, was retired between games at Community Field.

It was the first time in the league’s 62-year history that a number was retired.

“[Leo] is really everything the program stands for,” said North Attleboro Junior Football Secretary Joe Lurie. “To have a positive attitude, to be a good teammate, to go out there and compete, no matter what the circumstances are.”

Last December, one day shy of his sixteenth birthday, Leo died of the rare, aggressive bone cancer Ewing sarcoma.

Leo had been diagnosed with the disease at eight years old after X-rays following a football injury revealed the cancer.

Despite enduring fourteen rounds of high-dose chemotherapy and an amputation of his left leg below the knee, Leo did the unthinkable: he returned to the football field.

“He was fit with a prosthetic and was still bold enough and tough enough and gritty enough to continue to play the sport of tackle football, which shows how much fight he had in him,” Lurie said. “And he did it with a smile. And all of his coaches think the world of him.”

The words “Live like Leo” were unveiled on the press box to applause from both North Attleboro fans as well as rivals Attleboro, with both sides wearing yellow to show solidarity and raise awareness for childhood cancer.

The captains of North Attleboro’s high school football team – Leo’s former teammates when they played junior football – handed Leo’s parents a Super Bowl ring from their state championship win last December, a victory they believe Leo should have been on the field to celebrate.

“Today is definitely tough,” said co-captain and former teammate Conor Casey. “It’s really sad. But I love all the stuff the program has done for him and the family.”

“I just love how honored he is by the town, how loved he is by everybody,” added co-captain Corey Rofino.

The league held a fundraiser last month, collecting $2,500 to benefit Tommy’s Place, which provides special vacation homes for kids with cancer and their families.

The check was presented before applause from fans who wore shirts that read “Live like Leo.”

“To be that young and experience cancer twice and still push through to be with his friends,” said high school co-captain Nathan Rivera of the motto. “He came back and still played football. Just to live with courage, be brave, and take what life gives you and make the best out of what you’re given.”

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