Whiz Beck is more than just a man behind his desk. He is a husband, a father of five, a Christian, and a man who has endured cancer on his brain, lungs, and legs. Through all this, he has always had his positive attitude.

Six years ago Beck was diagnosed with Renel Cell Carcinoma, (RCC) – a form of kidney cancer. He had it removed and on his four- year anniversary of being cancer free, he was told by his doctors, “There was a 5 percent chance that cancer will ever come back.” However, six years to the day of being cancer free, he was told that the RCC had come back and this time it was on his brain and also his lungs and leg. He knew this time it was more serious than before. “This was not going to take my life,” he added.

When asked about what made him go to the doctor, he answered, “I had been having headaches and the doctors were sure it was just a sinus infection.”

However, his wife had said to him, “I think you have had a stroke; your face is droopy.”

His sister said to him, “Whiz, your voice sounds different, are you alright?”

He came into work and Jackie Turk followed Beck into his office and told him, “Whiz, you look like you have had a stroke.” He immediately left work and went to the doctor. He wanted to know what was going on. Beck believes in endurance and that people have to want to help themselves through hard times.

Beck said his wife has been like a rock throughout his illness. Her response was, “We hang our hats on those prayers.” She added, “Remember your blessings.”

His kids, he says, “have the same faith. I told them; ‘If I have to leave this earth early, remember all that I have taught you.’”

Beck always looks for the positive side of life, and surrounds himself with positive people. Even when he found out he had cancer he told himself, “That if this is God’s will, then so be it.”

When this interview started, Beck said, “I am waiting for a phone call from my doctors.” He mentioned he had not been feeling well for about a week. “I have had a headache and my neck has been sore for some time, but I think there is a virus going around lately. This is the way I found out about my cancer the last time, but this time is different. It just doesn’t feel like the symptoms from before.” After sharing that bit of information, he added, “We can do the interview anyway.”

Beck comes across as a man with no fear. “I immediately put my trust into God, my faith, and my family,” he said. His immediate family included his wife and five children. He considers the people right here on campus, as another family, and this family, he says “is second to none.” He said he has another family and that is his church family, “They too are second to none,” Beck stated. After that, all total, there were 800 to 1000 people praying for him. The power of prayer, Beck says, “made me aware that God was well aware of who all these people were praying for.” He added, “Without the power of prayer I would not have made it. Even the doctors were amazed.”

When he got out of surgery, nothing could wake him up, but within fifteen minutes something happened and Beck was talking; within the first twenty four hours, he was up walking around without as much as a Tylenol.

“My lung cancer is almost gone, my cancer in my leg is almost gone,” Beck said. “I am starting to feel better and I am convinced this is just a virus that everyone else has been getting.”

At this point the telephone rang and Beck said, “Excuse me, this is my doctor and I have to take this call.” The news Beck received from the doctor’s nurse was not the answer he was hoping for. She explained to him that he needed to go to St. Josephs Hospital in Marshfield, WI, because Beck had another tumor, this time on his frontal lobe. It was two centimeters in size, and was causing some bleeding on his brain. His doctors were concerned and needed to observe the bleeding so nothing else could go wrong. Beck did not appear to be the least bit nervous about the news. “The tumor can be taken care of with a Gamma Knife procedure,” he said. “I will have it removed and I will be back to work by Monday.”

Despite the news, he was still positive and wanted to continue with the interview. He said, “I feel good about this little setback. The tumor is only two centimeters.”

Beck is a very strong-willed person with a positive attitude, and when he was asked what drives him, he replied, “There are three things that drive me: One is to always treat people the way I want to be treated, Second, always be thankful for what you have, and Third, never give up.” Beck plans to deal with whatever comes his way. He concluded, “I love being at school.”