Dan Waeger, a graduate assistant golf coach at Wagner from 2004-06 and a passionate advocate in the fight against cancer, died March 16 at the age of 26.

A native of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Waeger graduated in 2004 from McDaniel, where he was a member of the golf team. He completed his MBA at Wagner in 2005 while undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore.

In 2005, he started the National Collegiate Cancer Foundation, with a large portion of the money raised by the foundation going toward scholarships for students who might not be able to maintain job commitments due to cancer treatments.

“Dan was a dedicated young man who did a great job with the team,” said former Wagner head men’s and women’s golf coach John Garland. “When he was diagnosed, he took on the challenge, set up golf tournaments. He made it his life’s work from beginning to end. I will always remember him as a very happy and energetic person who wanted our golfers to have a great experience.”

A non-smoker and a life-long fitness enthusiast, Waeger waged a courageous battle against lung cancer for nearly four years, raising awareness in addition to dollars while inspiring others. He and his fiancée, Meg Rodgers, developed their own blog through which they have communicated with cancer victims and their families.

“He lived with lung cancer for three years and 10 months. And when I say ‘lived,’ that grossly underestimates the contributions he made to all of us who love him and those who were inspired from afar,” Rodgers wrote in the entry announcing Waeger’s death.

The family is encouraging donations to the foundation in honor of Waeger.