{"id":211974,"date":"2026-06-05T22:39:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T22:39:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/211974\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T22:39:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T22:39:10","slug":"warren-timko-a-high-school-football-player-from-western-pa-overcomes-rare-brain-tumor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/211974\/","title":{"rendered":"Warren Timko, a high school football player from Western Pa., overcomes rare brain tumor"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTHE SUFFERING AND SLEEPLESS NIGHTS WEREN\u2019T FOR NOTHING. YOU MAY REMEMBER BACK IN 2024, WE BROUGHT YOU THE STORY OF WARREN TIMKO, A PENNSYLVANIA HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PLAYER DIAGNOSED WITH A RARE BRAIN TUMOR WHO WAS FIGHTING FOR HIS LIFE. NOW, NOT ONLY IS HE CANCER FREE, HIS REMARKABLE EFFORT IS BEING RECOGNIZED. AT THE SAME TIME, HE\u2019S GRADUATING HIGH SCHOOL, PREPARING FOR COLLEGE. HE IS BEING INDUCTED INTO THE WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA INTERSCHOLASTIC ATHLETIC LEAGUE HALL OF FAME. IF A RASH SPOKE WITH WARREN TIMKO, HIS MOM AND HIS COACH ABOUT THIS JOURNEY, AND FOLKS, KEEP THE TISSUES NEARBY, THIS ONE\u2019S A TEARJERKER. ACTUALLY, WE NEVER THOUGHT THIS DAY WOULD COME. LIKE WE. YEAH, I THOUGHT I WOULD BE DEAD. NOTHING CAN STOP WARREN TIMKO. HE MADE IT. HE\u2019S A GRADUATING SENIOR FROM UPPER SAINT CLAIR. BUT JUST TWO YEARS AGO, HE DIDN\u2019T KNOW IF HE WOULD MAKE IT TO THIS POINT. IF YOU TOLD ME THAT I WOULD BE IN THIS POSITION, I WOULDN\u2019T HAVE BELIEVED YOU BECAUSE I WAS GOING THROUGH SO MUCH IN TREATMENT AND RECOVERY THAT, LIKE, EVEN THINKING LIKE A MONTH IN ADVANCE WAS HARD FOR ME TO EVEN THINK ABOUT. I SAT DOWN WITH WARREN AND HIS MOM, DEBBIE, JUST A FEW WEEKS AFTER HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH A RARE BRAIN TUMOR BACK IN 2024, AT JUST 16, HE WAS FIGHTING FOR HIS LIFE. HE ENDED UP GETTING THE TUMOR REMOVED IN MARCH OF 2025, AND BY JUNE, HE WAS RINGING THAT BELL. BUT IT WAS STILL AN UPHILL AND SCARY BATTLE. THERE WAS A LONG PROCESS THAT WAS. VERY DIFFICULT. I, I HAD TO RELEARN LIKE BALANCING. I ALSO HAD TO RELEARN HOW TO TALK. NOW HIS COURAGE AND HEART HAVE HIM BEING INDUCTED INTO THE 2026 WPIAL HALL OF FAME. MY THOUGHTS AT FIRST WERE LIKE ME. LIKE I SAW THE OTHER PEOPLE IN THE GROUP. ONE OF MY IDOLS GROWING UP IS IN IT, KURT ANGLE. I USED TO WATCH HIM IN WWE AND TO SEE MY NAME WITH THAT, I\u2019M LIKE, I COULDN\u2019T BELIEVE IT. HE\u2019S A KID THAT HAS BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH AND HAS FOUGHT SO HARD, AND HE REALLY HE SUMMONED A COURAGE INSIDE OF HIM THAT THAT I DIDN\u2019T EVEN KNOW HE HAD. AND, AND SO I CAN\u2019T THINK OF ANYBODY MORE DESERVING TO BE A PART OF THAT HALL OF FAME FROM WALKING OUT ONTO THE FIELD FOR SENIOR NIGHT TWO WEEKS LATER, RUNNING OUT WITH THE TEAM DURING PLAYOFFS, HIS DETERMINATION AND STRENGTH GOT HIM TO WHERE HE IS TODAY. HEADING OFF TO COLLEGE IN JUST A FEW WEEKS. I\u2019M GOING TO COLLEGE AT DAYTONA STATE MY FRESHMAN YEAR, AND I PLAN TO TRANSFER INTO THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI BECAUSE THAT\u2019S MY DREAM SCHOOL. WARREN JUST GOT NEW SCANS BACK TWO WEEKS AGO AND EVERYTHING IS CLEAR. IT\u2019S SO GREAT TO SEE YOU GUYS AFTER. ALL I HAD TO GO THROUGH AND TO SHOW EVERYBODY THAT I\u2019M GOOD NOW. IT REALLY IS JUST SURREAL. THAT W\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Warren Timko, a high school football player from Western Pa., overcomes rare brain tumor<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"WGAL<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tUpdated: 5:50 PM EDT Jun 5, 2026\n\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\tEditorial Standards \u24d8<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tWarren Timko, a high school senior from Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania, has gone from battling a rare brain tumor to being inducted into the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League Hall of Fame. From diagnosis to Hall of FameTimko was diagnosed with the tumor in 2024 at the age of 16, facing a life-threatening challenge. “We never thought this day would come,” said his mother, Debbie. Timko added, “I thought I’d be dead.” After undergoing surgery to remove the tumor in March 2025, Timko began a difficult recovery process. “There was a long process that was very difficult. I had to relearn, like, balancing. I also had to relearn how to talk,” he said. By June 2025, he rang the bell to mark the end of his treatment. Recognition and resilienceReflecting on his Hall of Fame induction, Timko said, “My thoughts at first were like, me. Like I saw the other people in the group. One of my idols growing up is in it, Kurt Angle. I used to watch him in WWE, and to see my name with that, like, I couldn’t believe it.” Mike Junko, Timko\u2019s football coach, praised his resilience. “He’s a kid that has been through so much and has fought so hard. He’s summoned a courage inside of him that I didn’t even know he had. And so, I can’t think of anybody more deserving to be a part of that Hall of Fame,” Junko said. Looking aheadTimko\u2019s determination was evident as he returned to the football field for senior night and later joined his team during the playoffs.Now, he is preparing for college. “I’m going to college at Daytona State my freshman year. And I plan to transfer to the University of Miami. So that’s my dream school,” he said. Timko recently received clear scans, marking another milestone in his recovery. “Thank you. It’s so great to see you guys after all I had to go through and to show everybody that I’m good now. It really is just surreal,” he said. Timko will be officially inducted into the Hall of Fame at a ceremony Friday night.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tUPPER ST. CLAIR TOWNSHIP, Pa. \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Warren Timko, a high school senior from Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania, has gone from battling a rare brain tumor to being inducted into the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League Hall of Fame. <\/p>\n

\t\t\"warren<\/p>\n

From diagnosis to Hall of Fame<\/p>\n

Timko was diagnosed with the tumor in 2024 at the age of 16, facing a life-threatening challenge. “We never thought this day would come,” said his mother, Debbie. Timko added, “I thought I’d be dead.” <\/p>\n

After undergoing surgery to remove the tumor in March 2025, Timko began a difficult recovery process. “There was a long process that was very difficult. I had to relearn, like, balancing. I also had to relearn how to talk,” he said. By June 2025, he rang the bell to mark the end of his treatment. <\/p>\n

\t\t\"warren<\/p>\n

Recognition and resilience<\/p>\n

Reflecting on his Hall of Fame induction, Timko said, “My thoughts at first were like, me. Like I saw the other people in the group. One of my idols growing up is in it, Kurt Angle. I used to watch him in WWE, and to see my name with that, like, I couldn’t believe it.” <\/p>\n

Mike Junko, Timko\u2019s football coach, praised his resilience. “He’s a kid that has been through so much and has fought so hard. He’s summoned a courage inside of him that I didn’t even know he had. And so, I can’t think of anybody more deserving to be a part of that Hall of Fame,” Junko said. <\/p>\n

Looking ahead<\/p>\n

Timko\u2019s determination was evident as he returned to the football field for senior night and later joined his team during the playoffs.<\/p>\n

\t\t\"warren<\/p>\n

\t\t\"warren<\/p>\n

Now, he is preparing for college. “I’m going to college at Daytona State my freshman year. And I plan to transfer to the University of Miami. So that’s my dream school,” he said. <\/p>\n

Timko recently received clear scans, marking another milestone in his recovery. “Thank you. It’s so great to see you guys after all I had to go through and to show everybody that I’m good now. It really is just surreal,” he said. <\/p>\n

Timko will be officially inducted into the Hall of Fame at a ceremony Friday night. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"THE SUFFERING AND SLEEPLESS NIGHTS WEREN\u2019T FOR NOTHING. YOU MAY REMEMBER BACK IN 2024, WE BROUGHT YOU THE…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":211975,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[70489,28,30,29,92948,74153,92946,92947],"class_list":["post-211974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-high-school-senior","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news","tag-rare-brain-tumor","tag-upper-st-clair","tag-warren-timko","tag-western-pennsylvania-interscholastic-athletic-league-hall-of-fame"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211974","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=211974"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211974\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/211975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=211974"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=211974"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=211974"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}