On Thanksgiving morning, Matt Krueger will climb into the family car feeling sick, his stomach still tender from 14 skin staples used to close a painfully long incision.

As the family begins a day-long journey headed south, the 19-year-old Wisconsin farm kid won't feel much like eating the traditional turkey dinner. His appetite is suppressed from the toxic chemicals pumping through his bloodstream.

“

I have a good attitude and the support of my friends and family. They are all taking great care of me; it makes me feel extremely loved and special. And that is what I am most thankful for this year.

”

-- MATT KRUEGER

Taking a nap in the backseat to pass the time sounds like a good idea, but Krueger can't predict when his muscles will painfully spasm and jerk him awake.

At this point, giving thanks at the family dinner table would seem absurd.

But on the contrary, Krueger is thankful. Despite being diagnosed with an aggressive form of colon cancer right before the holidays, he is thankful and even overwhelmed by what his friends and family -- living in small-town Ixonia -- made possible.

They pooled their resources and called in a few favors to help give Krueger something tangible to be thankful for and in turn gave him an even greater feeling of gratitude.

Krueger, who is spending the entire Thanksgiving holiday road-tripping to Concord, N.C., will be allowed to do something only some young men dream of.

Lowe's Motor Speedway will allow Krueger to take a few laps -- who knows how many he'll fit into 30 minutes -- around the mile-and-a-half track Friday in his own personal car, a classic 1999 metallic blue Camaro Z28.

The idea came to pass in October while Krueger was in the hospital undergoing surgery to removed 50 percent of his cancerous colon. Krueger befriended a nurse who shared his love of cars, and he shared his wish to drive his Camaro on a race track some day. Touched by his positive attitude and resilience after his prognosis, nurse Helayne Kirchoff felt compelled to do something nice for Krueger and his family.

She called friend Lyle Wuestenberg, owner of J&L Tire in Watertown, Wis., who then contacted the right people at LMS who agreed to incorporate Krueger into the track's Souvenir and Race Ticket promotion this weekend.

Preparations were made to transport Krueger's Camaro to Concord.

"I'm still in shock. My family wants me to go like 55 miles an hour but I hope to top it out," Krueger said.

His mother, Kitty Krueger, said spending the Thanksgiving holiday in the car for 16 hours is less than ideal, but she knows the joy her son will experience is well worth the haul.

"This will be great for him. A great way to spend the holiday together, because he's going to beat this cancer and go on to live a long and happy life, he told me so and not to cry for him," Kitty said. "He wants to be the poster child for this disease and help others."

Once Krueger completes his chemotherapy, he will travel to Washington, D.C., to undergo a second surgery to remove any remaining cancer from his body. It's a surgery that doesn't have a guaranteed success rate.

Prior to his diagnosis in October, Krueger was in and out of the doctor's office displaying flu-like symptoms -- dehydration, vomiting, diarrhea. He went about his daily routine, rarely missed work and was even trying to plan the perfect wedding proposal to his now-fiancé Casey.

The 16th Annual Souvenir and Race Ticket Blow Out Sale gives fans the opportunity to see the track just as their favorite driver does.

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Doctor's knew that Krueger was suffering from an obstructed bowel but further examination told them he was suffering from colon cancer.

"The surgery was supposed to only be an hour long at 4 p.m. that day, Oct. 22nd," Kitty recalled. "At 7 p.m., the surgeon came out and said, 'I'm really sorry to tell you this but your son has Stage 4 cancer.' I was in shock and then we just all just cried."

Once Matt came out of surgery, the tears would dry as the family gained strength through his outlook and determination to beat the disease.

Matt resolved to carry on life as planned and on Nov. 3 he proposed to his girlfriend Casey on her 20th birthday.

On bended knee, Matt proposed and Casey said yes. Still sore from the staples in his skin, he used her shoulder to steady himself to get back up.

Continuing to get back up after some rough blows is what Matt does best.

"I have a good attitude and the support of my friends and family," he said. "They are all taking great care of me; it makes me feel extremely loved and special. And that is what I am most thankful for this year."

The Krueger family keeps a diary of their journey to beat cancer and their journey to grant a special wish during this holiday season. You can follow their progress at http://www.mkruegerfamily.blogspot.com/.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.