By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 17:15 EST, 27 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 17:35 EST, 27 January 2014 . A father who has been diagnosed with cancer has vowed to write 800 notes for his daughter so that she has one in her lunch box every day until she leaves high school. Garth Callaghan, 44, from Glen Allen, Virginia, has been writing short messages on napkins for his daughter Emma, 14, since she was in kindergarten - and now she looks forward to them every day. So after Mr Callaghan was diagnosed with cancer three times in the past two years - kidney cancer twice and prostate cancer once - he realized that, if he lost his battle with the disease, he never wanted her to go without. Now he is on a mission to write 800 of the notes - which are each compiled on simple white napkins and popped in her lunch bag - in case he doesn't reach her graduation. Close: Garth Callaghan has been writing his daughter Emma napkin notes since she was in kindergarten . The note-writing has long been a tradition between the father and daughter; it began when Callaghan worked a busy sales job in her elementary school days and wouldn't see her often. So that she always knew her father was thinking of her, Callaghan would write the notes - which were then just hearts, stars and simple words - and include them in her lunch box. But over the years, the notes have developed into words of advice or of encouragement on test days, and by the time she was about eight, she'd come to expect the notes. Some days, she would look at her lunch before he had placed on inside, and she'd demand to know where it was, he told the Times-Dispatch last year. Determined: After learning he had cancer, he sought to write 800 notes so that she'd have one every day throughout high school - even if he was no longer alive to put it in her lunch box . Words of encouragement: He uses quotes from famous people or simply jots words of love to Emma . 'That's when I realized, this is something that really matters,' he said. Callaghan's wife, Lissa, said the task also means he's taken over the chore of making his daughter's lunch, which he tries to keep healthy. 'I think it's great,' she said. 'It's nice that he keeps that connection with her.' But in 2011, he was diagnosed with cancer and his desire to write the notes became even stronger because, 'at the end of the day, these notes might be the only thing my daughter has left of me'. His tumor was successfully removed - but he has since been diagnosed twice more, and his doctor has told him that he will lose his life to the disease. If . he doesn't win his fight against cancer, he's hopeful that the words of . people like Eleanor Roosevelt, Gandhi and Audrey Hepburn will provide . her some guidance. Giving back: Emma has started writing her father notes back, such as: 'An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backwards so when life is dragging you back, it means it's going to launch you into something awesome' Thankful: Garth responded with a thank you note, saying: 'I love the person you are!' Lunchtime treat: He pops the notes in with her lunch, which he tries to make as nutritious as he can . 'Today, I am NED â€“ No Evidence of . Disease,' he told Metro. 'I still likely have cancer, but we canâ€™t see . it. That's the irony. I am actually ok, and I feel well.' Emma has been saving some of the notes in a composition book and now sends back her own. 'An . arrow can only be shot by pulling it backwards, so when life is . dragging you back, it means itâ€™s going to launch you into something . awesome,' she wrote to her father recently. She told the Times Dispatch that she tries her hardest not to look at the note until lunch time. 'It helps me to have something to look forward to,' she said. Mr Callaghan shares the notes he writes Emma on Facebook and his website. Devoted to Emma: Garth is pictured with Emma, his and his wife's only child, in her younger years . Hopeful: Garth (with Emma) has no evidence of disease but his doctor has told him it will likely return .
Virginia dad Garth Callaghan has been diagnosed with cancer 3 times in past 2 years and doctors said it will take his life .
He has been writing notes for his daughter Emma's lunchbox since she was little and it has become a tradition between father and daughter .
He is now writing hundreds of notes, which contain inspirational quotes, for her to receive every day in case he does not live until her graduation .
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 17:15 EST, 27 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 17:35 EST, 27 January 2014 . A father who has been diagnosed with cancer has vowed to write 800 notes for his daughter so that she has one in her lunch box every day until she leaves high school. Garth Callaghan, 44, from Glen Allen, Virginia, has been writing short messages on napkins for his daughter Emma, 14, since she was in kindergarten - and now she looks forward to them every day. So after Mr Callaghan was diagnosed with cancer three times in the past two years - kidney cancer twice and prostate cancer once - he realized that, if he lost his battle with the disease, he never wanted her to go without. Now he is on a mission to write 800 of the notes - which are each compiled on simple white napkins and popped in her lunch bag - in case he doesn't reach her graduation. Close: Garth Callaghan has been writing his daughter Emma napkin notes since she was in kindergarten . The note-writing has long been a tradition between the father and daughter; it began when Callaghan worked a busy sales job in her elementary school days and wouldn't see her often. So that she always knew her father was thinking of her, Callaghan would write the notes - which were then just hearts, stars and simple words - and include them in her lunch box. But over the years, the notes have developed into words of advice or of encouragement on test days, and by the time she was about eight, she'd come to expect the notes. Some days, she would look at her lunch before he had placed on inside, and she'd demand to know where it was, he told the Times-Dispatch last year. Determined: After learning he had cancer, he sought to write 800 notes so that she'd have one every day throughout high school - even if he was no longer alive to put it in her lunch box . Words of encouragement: He uses quotes from famous people or simply jots words of love to Emma . 'That's when I realized, this is something that really matters,' he said. Callaghan's wife, Lissa, said the task also means he's taken over the chore of making his daughter's lunch, which he tries to keep healthy. 'I think it's great,' she said. 'It's nice that he keeps that connection with her.' But in 2011, he was diagnosed with cancer and his desire to write the notes became even stronger because, 'at the end of the day, these notes might be the only thing my daughter has left of me'. His tumor was successfully removed - but he has since been diagnosed twice more, and his doctor has told him that he will lose his life to the disease. If . he doesn't win his fight against cancer, he's hopeful that the words of . people like Eleanor Roosevelt, Gandhi and Audrey Hepburn will provide . her some guidance. Giving back: Emma has started writing her father notes back, such as: 'An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backwards so when life is dragging you back, it means it's going to launch you into something awesome' Thankful: Garth responded with a thank you note, saying: 'I love the person you are!' Lunchtime treat: He pops the notes in with her lunch, which he tries to make as nutritious as he can . 'Today, I am NED â€“ No Evidence of . Disease,' he told Metro. 'I still likely have cancer, but we canâ€™t see . it. That's the irony. I am actually ok, and I feel well.' Emma has been saving some of the notes in a composition book and now sends back her own. 'An . arrow can only be shot by pulling it backwards, so when life is . dragging you back, it means itâ€™s going to launch you into something . awesome,' she wrote to her father recently. She told the Times Dispatch that she tries her hardest not to look at the note until lunch time. 'It helps me to have something to look forward to,' she said. Mr Callaghan shares the notes he writes Emma on Facebook and his website. Devoted to Emma: Garth is pictured with Emma, his and his wife's only child, in her younger years . Hopeful: Garth (with Emma) has no evidence of disease but his doctor has told him it will likely return .
with cancer has vowed to write 800 notes for his every day until she leaves high school. Garth three times in the past two years - kidney cancer mission to write 800 of the notes - which are in her lunch bag - in case he doesn't reach her graduation. Close: Garth Callaghan has been writing his daughter Emma napkin notes since she been a tradition between the father and daughter; he was diagnosed with cancer and his desire to that he will lose his life to the disease. If .