Nick Swisher‘s mom, Lillian, is battling leukemia as he launches a fund-raising drive to fight cancer, the Yankee star revealed to Page Six.
Swisher, who lost his beloved grandmother Betty to brain cancer in 2005, said, “Cancer in general is so close to me. My grandmother was the closest person to me in my life. From then on out, it was almost a mission to do any work I could to fight this horrible disease.
“My mother is doing great. She is going through, I guess you could call it, hell right now. But the way she’s fighting it, I could not be more proud of her. It’s been a rough road. Everybody knows someone who has dealt with cancer, so I think the best thing we can do is show a united front and do everything we can to find a cure.”
Swisher is in LA for a charity event with the Art of Shaving called “Movember.” He’ll participate in a monthlong, mustache-growing drive to raise funds for cancer research. He says he’ll grow the biggest mustache he can before ceremoniously shaving it off in New York early next month.
Meanwhile, he’s planning his wedding to Joanna Garcia, star of ABC’s “Better With You.” Explaining that he’s moved to LA to be with her during the off-season, he said, “I moved here when I met Joanna. Her work is out here. She supports me during the season, I support her during her season. She is my princess. I just could not be more happy.
PHOTOS: NICK SWISHER & JOANNA GARCIA
“We take so much pride in being able to back each other up. In the baseball world and in television, you have your ups and downs. It’s just so great to have your best friend with you throughout everything good and everything bad.”
Of the wedding, rumored to be in Miami next month, he said, “We’re so excited to have our friends and family there, and we could just not be more ecstatic about it. I can’t wait to see her on the day.”