Dad Leaves Message To Family In Newspaper When He Dies, And His Family Isn't Surprised

Cancer is undoubtedly one of the biggest health problems humans have ever been presented with. Day in and day out, research scientists are getting closer to a cure, but currently, hundreds of thousands of people die every year from it. One man who recently passed away after a battle with cancer is showing everyone that while cancer is a tough opponent, the human spirit can still reign supreme in the end. Walter Harris had something very special planned for his family when he passed away, and what he did is going viral. 


SHARE this article with your Facebook friends. We all have a thing or two to learn from Walter's attitude. 

Cancer is estimated to take the lives of more than 500,000 people in 2016 alone. 

Everyone has been affected by cancer in some way shape or form, which is exactly why scientists and policy makers are doing everything they can to develop new therapies to combat it. 

While the cancer epidemic may seem defeating or depressing, it is out of these harrowing situations that the human spirit can shine through the brightest. 

Walter Harris of Ross Township, Pennsylvania is one of those spirits who managed to shine in spite of it all.

Walter, who recently lost his battle with cancer, made sure that his death wasn't a depressing occasion. In fact, he ensured that his personality and spirit affected those that he loved even after his passing. 

Walter wrote something special for his family just prior to his death that is going viral.

He took to a local newspaper to send them a... unique message...

He wanted to give his family and friends a taste of the old Walter, the person they had grown to love during his life. Walter took to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to write a custom obituary. 

Yep, you read that correctly. 

Walter planned on having the obituary get published in the newspaper upon his passing. 

What a clever, clever man. 

Here is the obituary that he wrote. Let's take a look at some excerpts from this masterpiece. 

One line read, "Walt was born in the backseat of a Greyhound bus rollin’ down Highway 41." Another read, "His infectious personality led to a city-wide quarantine."

Oh, but it gets better...

If you look closely, he even tackles a sensitive subject: his battle with cancer. 

"Walter D. Harris, 56, of Ross Township, Pennsylvania, died January 30, 2017, after losing a weak and cowardly battle with cancer." He adds that, "The location of his passing is none of your business."

One of his friends described how the humorous obituary perfectly reflected Walter's views and personality. 

“He had come to believe that people, at least in the United States, were taking themselves and their lives too seriously,” said his friend Steve Barcley. "It wasn’t meant to be an object lesson to anybody, I don’t think. It was meant to say, ‘I, Walt Harris, am not taking my life too seriously,’ even in his most serious moment," he added. 

When asked about his reaction to Walter's message, his brother Cliff wasn't at all surprised. 

“Oh, that’s him,” he said. “It was his wit, his humor, how he carries himself. It was quite fantastic. It put a big smile on my face during a very hard time," Cliff added. We all have a thing or two to learn from Walter's attitude. In his last moments, he thought about giving his family one last laugh. 

Our hearts go out to Walter's family. One thing is for sure, though, they lost one funny guy. 

Leave a COMMENT on Facebook letting us know what you thought about his message to his family. 

h/t CBS Pittsburgh