Jackson Free Press

Update: The Jackson Free Press learned this morning that Orley Hood has died. Here is his friend Rick Cleveland tribute to him from last fall.

I went up to the University of Mississippi Medical Center last week to visit my old pal, golf partner, fellow Braves and Saints lover, and much-admired writer, Orley Hood. He was on his fifth day of chemo treatment, getting ready for a bone marrow transplant.

I hoped to cheer him up. Fat chance. It's hard to cheer up somebody who treats every day like a gift from Santa Claus. Instead, he cheered me up. His attitude throughout his ordeal--since getting diagnosed with acute leukemia on 11/11/11--has been nothing short of inspiring.

Orley has made best friends with the nurses and many other patients and keeps them laughing. When I saw him, he was just back from a 30-minute walk, pushing his chemo along with him, around and around the fifth floor.

You'll love this part of our conversation:

"So I hear you are getting your bone marrow from a 21-year-old woman," I said.

"Yeah, when I get out of here, I'm going to go out for cheerleader," Orley replied.

Orley had his transplant a week ago today. His doctor says it was a rousing success. He's weak from the chemo but "ahead of schedule," says his doctor.

One bit of bad news: The UMMC cable doesn't get the Atlanta Braves games, so Orley keeps up on his laptop. He missed Tim Hudson's 200th win, and he missed banner night for rookie catcher Evan Gattis, who played last season in Pearl.

But back to Orley's health: He's optimistic. His doctor is optimistic. As a longtime friend, I couldn't be more proud of the way Orley has fought this dreadful disease.

If attitude has anything to do with it, OHood is going to knock leukemia out of the ballpark, a la Evan Gattis.

Mary Ann, Orley's lovely wife (M.A., to long-time readers of Orley's columns), put it best on Orley's CaringBridge page:

"I wish that all of you could spend a little time with Orley and see how amazing he his. He never feels sorry for himself or questions why this happened to him. In fact he just doesn't spend a lot of time dwelling on it at all. Says it's just a bad break and he's living life to the fullest each day. In fact, he does everything he can to make everyone around him more comfortable--the nurses, housekeepers, doctors--making them laugh and telling stories. It's just incredible how he has handled the last 16 months."

You can keep up with Orley at Caring Bridge.

Rick Cleveland is executive director of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. He can be reached at [email protected] and his columns and blogs can be found at msfame.com.