NEW LONDON — Coy Spooner, First Class Cadet, got on a call with the hierarchy at Coast Guard Academy and was presented two possible courses of action.
Course of Action A, he could return on a limited basis, academics only, no wrestling and not to be regimental commander as planned.
Course of Action B, he could take a one-year leave to complete recovery from his cancer, Hodgkins lymphoma.
But Spooner, who had already passed every test, including the challenge he’d given himself — running a marathon, and then immediately rowing the same 26-mile distance — rejected both.
“I’m going to propose Course of Action C,” he told them. “I will return with no restrictions and do everything I said I was going to do. I will come back and I will guarantee you I will do well in school, I will be a good R.C, I will have above a 285 on the physical fitness exam and I’ll be a wrestling team captain.’ I was like, ‘give me the opportunity, don’t try to shield me from something I could fail in. Give me the challenge. Let me prove it to you.’”
The Brass relented. Course of Action C, it would be.
What Spooner, 6 feet 4, an imposing figure with a vibe to match, sets out to do, says he will do, he does. By Jan. 6, eight months after he and his mother, Dionne, who had traveled from Arizona to be with him, got his diagnosis, Spooner had left cancer flat on its back and returned to the mat to begin winning matches again. He started with…
