Complications Related to Brain Tumor Finally Claim Rypien’s 3-Year-Old Son

Andrew Rypien, the 3-year-old son of former Super Bowl MVP quarterback Mark Rypien, died Saturday in Post Falls, Idaho, from complications related to an inoperable brain tumor.

The family, which also includes two older daughters, said a vigil will be conducted Monday, followed by a funeral Mass Tuesday.

Rypien, informed at the end of July that his son had no more than two months to live, had left the Atlanta Falcons to be with Andrew. While at home, he had taken to wearing a costume every day to get closer to his son, dressing as Tigger from Winnie the Pooh.

“It’s your child,” Rypien said in an interview a few weeks ago, “and things like this shouldn’t be happening to your child. But the thing we hold dear is all the positives Andrew brought to us. All we can do now is pray for a miracle, but in the meantime we are going to enjoy every day.”

Rypien’s wife, Annette, who recently underwent major surgery to eradicate cervical cancer, said she and her husband were overwhelmed by well-wishers and those hoping to provide further medical advice after their plight received national attention.

“Andrew doesn’t even know it,” she said two weeks ago in a telephone conversation updating her son’s condition, “but he’s already had such an impact on the lives of so many people.”