The Aliquippa and surrounding communities are rallying behind the family and friends of former Aliquippa student and football player DiMantae Bronaugh after he lost the fight to cancer on Nov. 29. Bronaugh was going through remission from cancer when he was diagnosed with Leukemia again in August of this year.

Bronaugh was 19 years old and was a senior on the Aliquippa football team, wearing jersey number 24. He previously led his team to victory with 1,200 rushing yards in 2014. After being diagnosed again, cancer denied Bronaugh the opportunity to get back out on the football field.

In mid November, however, he was offered the opportunity to leave the hospital and cheer on his team from the sidelines during the WPIAL championship game. According to his mom, this was an offer that he couldn’t pass up.

Although the team was trailing Beaver Falls, they had the undeniable support of Bronaugh. Although Bronaugh couldn’t play, he, along with the coaching staff, sported his jersey number during the game. According to Bronaugh’s mom, he wouldn’t miss this game for the world.

“He was determined to get here. Like, ‘mom, let’s get up, let’s get rolling; gotta get dressed.’ He told me what he wanted to put on. He wants to support his team. It’s all about football,” Bronaugh’s mom, J’Marla Bronaugh, said during the game in an interview with CBS Pittsburgh.

A few weeks after that game, however, Bronaugh lost the year-long battle against cancer. His only chance of survival was obtaining a bone marrow transplant of someone of the same ancestry; however, a transplant never came to fruition even after several bone marrow drives.

After his death, social media filled with tributes to Bronaugh from classmates, football players or coaches and members from in and outside the Aliquippa community. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin and Pitt Panthers football player James Conner both honored the life of Bronaugh through tweets on Twitter.

“RIP DiMantae Bronaugh. You showed so much courage and heart and were an inspiration to many. My sympathies to family, friends & teammates,” Tomlin tweeted a few hours after the news spread.

On Dec. 6, a memorial service was held for Bronaugh at a local church. Hundreds of people attended the service, many of whom were wearing shirts printed with “24 strong” on them. These shirts were distributed as encouragement during Bronaugh’s fight.

“I saw a lot of his teammates that already graduated. They’re coming from college, and they’re coming in as well. It just shows he’s touched their hearts,” Bronaugh’s cousin, Sonya Jeters, said in an interview with CBS Pittsburgh.

The support for Aliquippa’s loss didn’t just stay in the Aliquippa community; it spread to surrounding areas as well. On platforms such as Twitter or Instagram, there weren’t only posts honoring Bronaugh from Aliquippa, but other schools and areas as well. From Freedom to Pittsburgh, the hashtag “24 strong” along with a tribute to Bronaugh was used.

One aspect of Bronaugh that the family wants to live on was his upbeat attitude and determination towards everything he did.

“He never complained, never complained about it. Always had a smile on his face. You never even knew he was hurting,” Jaimie Browder, a spokesperson for the family, said in a statement to CBS Pittsburgh.

Bronaugh’s legacy ran once more on the field as the Beaver Fall’s football players wore number 24 stickers on the their helmets during the state championship game in Hershey, Pennsylvania on Dec. 10 when the Beaver Falls Tigers defeated Middletown Area 30-13.

Bronaugh’s fight on and off the field will impact the future Aliquippa football teams and communities in this area through his legacy of fighting until the end.