By Brooke Foster

Casting a line into calm water and waiting for the tug of a trophy bass is where 18-year-old Anderson Thrower is often found.

“Fishing is a passion of mine,” said Anderson, an award-winning student bass fisherman and Alfa Presidential Scholarship recipient. “A friend of mine took me fishing at a small pond in Birmingham when I was 14, and I caught a 6-pounder. After that, I was hooked. I joined my school’s fishing team freshman year, and it just took off from there.”

Today, Anderson is making a name for himself in the competitive bass fishing world — something he aspires to continue in Kentucky this fall as a member of Campbellsville University’s fishing team. Long before he cast lines, Anderson faced a battle far greater than any fish he could ever reel in. 

At 16 months old, he was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). For parents Jan and Andy and older sister Avery, the diagnosis cast their family into uncharted waters, where hope became their anchor. 

“Anderson was diagnosed Jan. 6, 2009, and our lives changed forever,” Jan said. “After three years of treatment, he took his final dose of chemo in 2012.” 

Throughout those years, Children’s Hospital of Alabama became a second home. Living in Birmingham spared the Throwers long-distance travel, but it couldn’t lessen the emotional toll of watching their young son fight for his life.

Their faith and the support of family and friends carried them through the darkest days.

“A good support system was critical throughout the process,” Jan said. 

As they spent countless hours at Children’s, they realized many families facing similar circumstances weren’t surrounded by that same support. 

“There were a lot of families around us that had literally no one,” Andy recalled. 

That planted the seed for something greater than their own story. 

In December 2009, the Throwers founded aTeam Ministries — a nonprofit dedicated to serving families facing pediatric cancer through rent-free housing, practical support and prayer. The ministry has since served more than 650 families, including Alabama Farmers Federation Area 4 Organization Director Steven Blackmon, wife Whitney and their son, Daniel.

The Blackmons spent seven months in aTeam’s Home Away From Home Apartments, fully furnished, rent-free housing that eased one burden during young Daniel’s treatment.

“aTeam Ministries has meant the world to my family,” Steven said. “The relationship we formed with Andy, Jan and the staff at aTeam Ministries is something Whitney and I will cherish forever. We can never thank them enough for our ‘little house,’ as Daniel liked to call it.”

Today, the Throwers’ story has come full circle. Each family member contributes in their own way, including Anderson, whose love of fishing inspired the annual aTeam Ministries Bass Fishing Classic charity tournament at Lake Jordan. 

Anderson’s greatest legacy isn’t measured by the fish he catches but by the hope his family’s journey has inspired — a lifeline for hundreds of families and a community to lean on when they need it most. 

“Going through something like cancer gives you a different perspective on life,” Jan said. “It changes what you value and reminds you how precious time really is.” 

Childhood Cancer Awareness Month  each September serves as a reminder of their journey and the mission born from it: ensuring no family fights alone.