LATIMER — Brad Fahrmann lived every day to its fullest — he had to.

He lived as if every day was his last, enjoying a life he knew was limited.

Fahrmann, a native of Latimer and sophomore in animal ecology, died Thursday after a long bout with cancer.

Diagnosed with neuroblastoma cancer during his junior year of high school, Fahrmann never let his illness keep him down, even through the pain.

“He was kind of shy and quiet, but whenever he spoke I listened because whatever he said was important,” said Ida Fahrmann, Brad’s mother. “He was a good role model for even myself.

“He worked through his cancer problems and he just fought; he wanted to enjoy life so much. Sometimes we might appreciate life a little bit more [when faced with illness], and he tried to do as much living as he could.”

That love for life brought him to Iowa State, where he joined the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. While in the fraternity, Fahrmann quickly became the backbone of the group.

“Brad was the type of person who was always happy-go-lucky,” said Pat Hoffman, junior in animal science and a member of Alpha Gamma Rho. “He never complained about anything, which was amazing considering what he was going through. Brad was the type of guy who would always be there if you needed him.”

Jon Sievers, junior in agricultural engineering and president of Alpha Gamma Rho, emphasized Fahrmann’s impact on the fraternity.

“I don’t know if I can put a measure on [what he meant to the house],” Sievers said. “When he came in, people had let us know he was sick, [but] he would never have told you that. You could see signs of chemotherapy, but he would never say anything like that, never show any sign of weakness.

“He meant a lot from the first day because he was an individual who had been through more then most people will in a lifetime, as far as pain and suffering. He was tough [from the moment] he walked in, he was strength.”

For Fahrmann, the fraternity became a place of refuge — a place where he wasn’t a cancer patient, but a brother.

“He just wanted to be one of the guys,” Sievers said. “No one ever treated him like he had cancer or had any kind of timetable; he just wanted to be one of the guys.”

The fraternity house became his home and one of the places he was happiest.

“Every time he came back to the house, I always got the feeling that he smiled a little bigger than he did when he wasn’t there,” Sievers said.

His time at the fraternity was limited due to his treatments.

“[The amount of time spent in Ames] would depend greatly on his condition, it went up and down all the time,” Hoffman said. “The first year he spent a lot of time with the fraternity. The second year was pretty much [spent] in and out of hospitals. This semester was hardly anything at all. He had moved in [during] the fall and his stuff was still there, but he didn’t spend any time there.”

With their brother in and out of the hospital, the members of Alpha Gamma Rho made frequent visits to be at Fahrmann’s side.

“The guys would always be going to the hospitals, and it got to the point where they wanted him at home,” Hoffman said. “We would come up and see him and he made it down for the Veishea parade — that was kind of his final ‘let go.'”

Alpha Gamma Rho members sold food during this year’s Veishea parade to raise money for Fahrmann. The fraternity raised about $3,000 on the day of the parade and is still receiving donations in the mail, Hoffman said. The money will go to the Fahrmann family, he said.

Members of Fahrmann’s fraternity were with him until just before he died.

“[The fraternity] was a really big part of his life; he really enjoyed that,” his mother said. “At first, he was a little apprehensive, but it was beyond his greatest imagination how great they’ve been to him. They’ve done everything, and he just loved it down there, he really did.

“I asked him to quit school, and he wouldn’t even quit school, he wanted to be down there so much.”

Brad also loved the outdoors, spending as much time as he could hunting and fishing.

“He was always wanting to fish and hunt,” Hoffman said. “He got a Make-A-Wish thing from Cabela’s, and he was just on cloud nine about that. He was one of those outdoors [guys]. He was an outstanding individual and what he accomplished, considering what he had against him. It was amazing.”

— Jason Noble contributed to this article.