Almost three months ago — knowing the end might be near — Shane and Shawn Green took part together one last time in the Chicago Half Marathon.
Shawn, who’d lived in Roscoe Village with his wife and 3-year-old daughter, died Thursday morning at his home, surrounded by family, following a battle with inoperable brain cancer.
“He fought a courageous battle and inspired many along the way,” said his twin, Shane. “He never complained once through this, no matter what we asked him to do.”
Shawn died as his wife, Erin, and his brother each held one of his hands.
Shane and Shawn — born and raised in Bernie, Mo. — were mostly inseparable. They went to the same college, they were each other’s best man. They both got jobs in Chicago. And when Shawn was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2009, Shane, who lives in Homer Glen, was at his brother’s side through all of it.
In September, doctors remained optimistic that some new medical treatments might slow down the tumor’s growth.
The Chicago Sun-Times featured the twins and followed them as they took part in the half marathon in September — something they’d done together for four of the past five years.
They each had offers to play basketball in college. They chose the University of St. Francis in Joliet, which wanted them both.
When Shawn was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2009, it only made sense that Shane would be at his twin’s side through it all. Shawn had surgery to remove the tumor that same year, but it returned, more aggressively, in 2015.
The twins a motto — “Every day is a good day” — tattooed on their torsos. In August, Shane got another tattoo — two “S’s” side by side in the center of a shield.
“It’s me protecting him,” Shane said in September. “It means something to me. It will forever be with me.”
