Game-night plans
Friday’s home football game against unbeaten Naugatuck will include a fundraiser for Nonnewaug senior offensive tackle Jonathan Cheung. Students have been asked to wear orange, and coach Scott Lynch invited Naugatuck coach Chris Anderson and his staff to bring their student section and wear the color, according to CT Insider’s report. Cheung is not expected to attend. His teammates continue to wear No. 55 decals on their helmets in his honor, the report says.
A different season for the Chiefs
The teams meet with different records and in different classifications: Nonnewaug is 3-3 in Class SS, while Naugatuck is 6-0 in Class L. Nonnewaug’s latest win came against Waterbury Career Academy, 19-18, on a touchdown pass from T.J. Rubsamen to Danny Nichols as time expired, according to CT Insider’s fundraiser coverage. Cheung started all 10 of Nonnewaug’s regular-season games before his diagnosis, NBC Connecticut reported in its account of the team’s earlier support for him.
Cheung’s school fundraising work
Cheung was also a member of Nonnewaug’s Cancer Crusaders, a student group that raised money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society during the 2024-25 school year. The Region 14 school district says the group raised $58,107.25 through activities including Red Out Week, bake sales, raffles, and outreach to businesses. The district’s announcement of the team’s award lists Cheung as a member.
Cheung was diagnosed with leukemia two days after playing in Nonnewaug’s senior-night game on Thanksgiving Eve last year. CT Insider reported that he was hospitalized in November 2025 and that his compromised immune system has prevented in-person visits, in its coverage of the Friday fundraiser and an earlier account. This article has not independently confirmed his current medical condition.
Childhood leukemia rates
For context, the age-adjusted U.S. rate of new childhood leukemia cases was 4.9 per 100,000 children per year, based on 2019–2023 cases, according to the National Cancer Institute’s SEER statistics. This national figure does not give a Connecticut-specific rate.
