CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – The white hospital room at Northwestern Medical Center was quiet in the late afternoon, save for the steady hum of an IV machine. Ryne Sandberg – the living legend of the Chicago Cubs, the 1984 MVP – lay there, his eyes hollow but still shining. He was battling advanced prostate cancer, a disease that had forced him to stop all public activities since the beginning of the year. But this week, his quiet act left the entire country speechless.
An envelope from Chicago – and a handwritten note that brought tears to everyone
Amid the relief supplies pouring into Kerr County, Texas – which had just suffered a devastating flash flood – a handwritten note and a $150,000 check were discovered in an unmarked box. The letter simply read:
“For those who are losing more than I am.
I am Ryne Sandberg. I can’t go out. But my heart is still going. – Ryno.”
The news spread quickly. While many people still thought Sandberg was in a coma – the world now knows that he secretly contacted the Texas Flood Relief Foundation, made anonymous transfers and requested relief supplies to areas not mentioned by the media.
“He asked more about Texas than about his illness,” said the doctor.
Dr. Marla Jensen – Sandberg’s main doctor – shared with the press:
“Every morning, instead of asking about chemotherapy, he asked: ‘How are the people at Camp Mystic? Have any children been found?'”
“He also asked us to print out a map of the Texas flood to map out the field clinics that needed support. A terminally ill patient… acted like a front-line commander.”
“I don’t want to be remembered for my home runs. I want to be remembered as a person.”
Sandberg has never bragged, and this was no exception. His family only learned about the donation when the media discovered it. His wife, Cindy, shared through tears:
“Ryno wrote that letter in the night after he heard that 27 kids at a summer camp had died. He cried quietly. Then he told me to call the bank.”
A monument – and an everlasting heart
Former teammate Andre Dawson called Sandberg “a baseball hero – but a real hero in real life.”
Cubs fans are calling for a section of Wrigley Field to be renamed “Ryno’s Corner” in honor of his big heart.
“I’m still breathing. I’m still loving.” – Ryne Sandberg, July 2025
Even though time is running out, the Cubs’ legendary No. 23 lives each day as if he were playing the last game of the season. Not to score, but to share every heartbeat with those who need it most.