Nick Mayerik announced the death of his son, Buffalo Bills superfan Eddie Mayerik, via Twitter on the evening of July 6, 2023. He was eight years old
The Mayerik patriarch said:
“Eddie isn’t suffering anymore. He’s left the physical world. But his love and spirit will live on forever bc he was such a force. Such a light. I’m so broken. I love you all. Thank You for ALWAYS being there. #Eddiesinfantryforever”•
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'; }); pollOptions.innerHTML = pollOptionsDom; pollCount.innerHTML = totalVotes + ' votes'; if (totalVotes > 10) { pollCount.classList.remove("hidden"); } } function trackBetsTodayPollImpression() { var intersectionObserverForArticlePoll = new IntersectionObserver( function(entries) { entries.forEach(function(entry) { var pollId = entry.target.getAttribute("data-poll-id"); if (POLLS_BY_ID[pollId]['impression_tracked']) return; if (!entry.target || !entry.isIntersecting || entry.intersectionRatio < 0.5) return; setTimeout(function() { if (isInViewport(entry.target)) { POLLS_BY_ID[pollId]['impression_tracked'] = true; var isDesktop = "1"; var gaPayload = { "question" : POLLS_BY_ID[pollId]['question'], "category": "NFL", "page_url": window.location.href, "option1": POLLS_BY_ID[pollId]['option1'], "option2": POLLS_BY_ID[pollId]['option2'], } if (isDesktop) { gaPayload["device"] = "Desktop"; } else { gaPayload["device"] = "Mobile"; } gtag("event", "BETS_TODAY_POLL_IMPRESSION", gaPayload); intersectionObserverForArticlePoll.unobserve(entry.target); } }, 1000); }); }, { threshold: 0.5 } ); var pollElements = document.querySelectorAll('.bets-today-poll'); pollElements.forEach(function(pollElement) { var isAnswered = pollElement.querySelector(".poll-option-answered"); if (!isAnswered) { intersectionObserverForArticlePoll.observe(pollElement); } }) } return { answerPollX: answerPollX, }; }();The team’s fans, affectionately called Bills Mafia, threw in their full support to the Mayerik family. Eddie was born with congenital heart failure, wherein two valves are defective, and he has no pulmonary artery.
That artery is critical in bringing blood from the heart to the lungs, which produce oxygen for the entire body. As a result, he has to wear a tube to help him in his breathing.
Nick Mayerik’s son underwent nine heart surgeries while spending much of Eddie’s life in the hospital. His last surgery lasted for 27 hours.
Eddie got his fighting spirit from his father, a former NAIA football player. As shared in this tweet, Nick implanted a deep appreciation for the sport to Eddie.
When not attending to his son, Nick works as a fitness coach specializing in exotic training.
While Eddie Mayerik dealt with a severe physical condition, his cheerful spirit and support for the Buffalo Bills never wavered. His father recorded short videos of him cheering for the AFC East squad.
Eddie Mayerik became a Bills fan because of his dad
Nick Mayerik became a Bills fan in the early 1990s when his parents took him to a football game between Buffalo and the Indianapolis Colts. They stayed in the hotel where the Bills stayed and met some players in the lobby.
He had a quick chat with outside linebacker Darryl Talley and tight end Pete Metzelaars. The 38-year-old physical trainer still has the hat signed by offensive lineman John Fina and wide receiver Bill Brooks.
His appreciation for the franchise grew when the community stood by him during Eddie’s ordeal. In 2021, Bills fans established “Eddie’s Infantry,” a branch of “Pancho’s Army.” Johnson and Anthony Trifilo created the latter, which helped Bills superfan Ezra Castro (a.k.a Pancho Billa) in his battle with cancer.
Aside from selling T-shirts to help with Eddie Mayerik’s medical expenses, the infantry also raffled off tickets to raise funds. Meanwhile, four GoFundMe pages for Eddie Mayerik raised close to $50,000.
Damar Hamlin also showed his support for the Mayerik family with this tweet.
During last year’s regular season game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Hamlin suffered a near-fatal incident. He suffered a cardiac arrest that left him unconscious for a long time. However, the first responders came on time, giving him another lease on life.
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