At the beginning of May, the 60-year-old Delvin Simmons form Oklahoma was diagnosed with severe stage 4 colon cancer. The man had been working as a proud truck driver for his entire life and knew that he wouldn’t be able to ride his truck for much longer.
The message that Delvin spread during his ‘last ride’ in his truck has now touched the hearts of millions.
Knowing that he soon wouldn’t have the strength to drive his favorite vehicle, Delvin decided to share an inspirational message to his children and to the entire world during his final ride.
Delvin received the absolutely horrendous news after he had his first colonoscopy. Doctors told him that his colon cancer has been present in some form for at least a decade, but it was detected too late. Unfortunately, stage 4 colon cancer isn’t curable and is often terminal.
The truck driver realized that if he had a colonoscopy years ago, the cancerous tumor could still be treated successfully.
Delvin hopes that his story will inspire others to perform a colonoscopy, preferably relatively early in order to detect the formation of cancerous cells in time.
“If I had had a colonoscopy 5 years ago, this may have all been different,” the man told News 9. “My life was not a waste. I can see good that has come from my life whether it is at the end or whether I’m just at a bump in the road.”
Delvin’s son Justin accompanied him in his truck when he rode it for the very last time. The truck driver has always taken a liking to the song “The Old Man is Dead” performed by Del Way, and finds great emotional support in the lyrics.
“I wanted to make that video for my kids in case I did not make the journey through this cancer,” he mentioned.
The truck driver beautifully sang the song in his truck, and you can clearly see the amount of passion and emotion he puts into it.
His son Justin captured the entire performance with his smartphone in the passenger’s seat and shared the footage on Facebook.
His dad understandably becomes overwhelmed with emotion towards the end of the song.
“I have sat in this hospital and I have cried. Not for sadness but because I am overwhelmed at what God is doing with that song,” Delvin said.
“I have never made it through that song without the Lord touching my heart, reminding me that he loved me and brought me out of what I used to be.”
Delvin, his wife Betty and their children received hundreds of supportive messages from strangers all over the world, and it also inspired the family to start a GoFundMe page to cover some of the large medical costs.
The footage was seen by more than seven million people, including the original singer of the song, Del Way, who then shared the video with his own followers. Del Way befriended the family, and the photograph above shows Justin and the singer standing in front of Delvin’s trusty truck.
Tragically, the Oklahoma native passed away just a month after the video was taken.
“On Friday, June 8th, exactly one month from the day Dad made his video that continues to touch millions across the globe, Dad’s fight with cancer ended as he headed on down the road to his final home with Jesus. Heaven is brighter now. We know Dad is dancing and singing in the presence of the Lord and has been reunited with those that had gone before him. We figure Dad and Grandpa are ranching and farming the fields of Heaven,” his family announced on the GoFundMe page.
His legacy will live on forever in his family, and his message has inspired the world.
“My life was not a waste. I can see good that has come from my life whether it is at the end or whether I’m just at a bump in the road,” Delvin told.
Delvin tragically passed away too soon, but he will certainly never be forgotten.
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