Matthew Milton Bravo’s road to recovery is finally coming to a close.
Bravo, a 20-year-old junior history major at the University of Florida, who in September was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma, told WUFT News that he will be finishing chemotherapy by the end of December.
“December 26th is the tentative date,” Bravo said. “But being done with chemo is the end of the bad stuff.”
To celebrate, Bravo says he’d like to return to doing holiday traditions with his family.
“It’ll take me a few weeks to recover,” Bravo said. “But I’d like to see the Night of Lights in St. Augustine, a family tradition of ours.”
Originally upon going public with his diagnosis, Bravo began fundraising for Blood Cancer United, an organization dedicated to curing leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma.
Bravo began with a small monthly goal, but when his fraternity brothers stepped in, his goal was met in just 50 minutes.
“My goal for fundraising for the month was $1,000. They got me to $10,000 in nine hours,” Bravo said. “It just shows me that Gainesville is a place that cares.”
In continued support, rather than offer the usual brochures and college swag while tabling, brothers of the Florida Chapter of Delta Chi gave out a different back-to-school essential: haircuts.
The fraternity hosted an event they called “Buzzcuts 4 Bravo” outside Plaza of the Americas. For every $100 raised, a new member of Delta Chi shaved their head in a show of solidarity.
For four hours, members stood with a nervous confidence, hovering around the donation table waiting for money to roll in. Every soft vibration from Venmo served as a reminder for the brothers of who they were fighting for.
One Delta Chi member in attendance, 21-year-old senior Elijah Files, said he didn’t have any donation goals in mind, but he wanted to ensure Bravo’s mission continues while he undergoes treatment.
“If one of our brothers is going through a tough time, and he has to lose all of his hair, we’re thinking: ‘Why should we have hair right now, too?” Files said.
Bravo has been one of his closest friends in the chapter for years, Files said. He added that, when he posted his freshly buzzed hair, Bravo responded to his post showing support for Files’ new look.
Bravo himself didn’t attend the event on Sept. 18 because he was preparing to receive a special declaration from the city of Gainesville later that day.
At around 5:30 p.m., Bravo, with his friends and family watching, stood next to Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward behind a podium while he read out the proclamation.
“Due to Blood Cancer United and Matthew’s tireless work, treatment breakthroughs are possible,” read Mayor Harvey Ward.
For Bravo, the recognition serves as a reminder of how his community has turned his experience into strength.
“People all across the campus have had people in their life who’ve been affected by cancer or another type of illness,” Bravo said. “They understand what it means to support others.”
As of Monday, his GoFundMe has raised over $27,669 for Blood Cancer United, and his social media continues to flood with thousands of likes and comments of support for Bravo and his mission.