Posted Saturday, September 11th, 2010
Updated Monday, September 13th, 2010
Faith and Football: Shirts for Sapulpa
Bobby Lewis
OKBlitz.com Mobile Journalist
BIXBY, Oklahoma – The pain of losing a teammate is still very real for the Sapulpa Chieftains. Friday, the team played its second game without Justin Fitzpatrick, a 16-year-old defensive back who died a day before the team’s season opener.
His locker is still empty, staring his former teammates in the face as they walk out to the field. Their hearts are still heavy, seeing a sticker bearing his No. 15 pressed on the backs of their helmets. They can’t help seeing fans hold up one and five fingers in memory of the “Fitz-Hammer”. His loss is still very real.
But, thanks to one Bixby student, the Chieftains have found some reason to smile.
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Makenzi Coder found out about Fitzpatrick’s death on Saturday night. Over the next few hours, the wheels in her head started to turn and the need to help started tugging at her heart strings.
The opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people she’d never even met couldn’t be passed up. Makenzi took action. Like most teenage girls, she grabbed for her cell phone to fire away a text.
Her message reached all of her friends, who then passed it on to their friends, and their friends and so on. Soon, her idea reached Facebook and the phone calls started pouring in. By Sunday afternoon, her plan was already in motion.
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The scene at the Bixby – Sapulpa game was different than most other Week 2 games. The Spartans faithful, normally decked out in Bixby blue and red, wore a simple, direct message on their bright, white t-shirts. Makenzi’s idea, scrawled across their chests in bold, blue print, was plain to see.
On the road, in the stands where fans used to watch Fitzpatrick play, nearly 1,000 Spartan spectators wore shirts with the fallen player’s No. 15 displayed proudly across the front. Makenzi’s plan to honor Fitzpatrick brought tears to some of the home fan’s eyes.
“I didn’t know how people were going to take it,” Makenzi said on Wednesday night. “But, everyone I’ve talked to is behind me 100 percent, and behind (Fitzpatrick’s) family to show them that people care, and that people love them.”
Her incredibly selfless gesture is just that – selfless. She says she felt like it was laid on her heart to do something to support the family of another teenager she’d never even met. Makenzi admits she could never imagine the agony of losing someone like that.
Over a dozen friends and family chipped in to help her pull off her t-shirt miracle. She skipped classes at school so she could field all of the orders. She helped fold all of the shirts and organized the distribution. She said it’s the least she could do. To her, the simple t-shirt with a stranger’s football number on it seemed considerate, benevolent and kind.
Her amazing display of compassion had others around the Bixby community taking notice.
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Practice was like any other Tuesday afternoon workout for the Spartans. Head coach Loren Montgomery barked out instructions to his club, directing traffic with every whistle. There was no change in his attitude towards the game, but the first-year Spartans head man knew that Friday would be special.
“It makes me proud of this community,” said Spartans head coach Loren Montgomery. “I think it’s indicative of this entire school, of this entire community and shows how special it is out there at Bixby.”
His players agree. All of them were blown away by Makenzi’s idea to honor the life of a player that they would have faced that weekend.
“I wouldn’t have thought of something like that. I think it’s a great thing to do,” said quarterback T.J. Eckert. “The fact that we’re wearing his number to their game is pretty cool.”
Some of the Bixby players wore Makenzi’s t-shirt underneath their blue jerseys on Friday night. Others bought one just to support the cause. In all, Makenzi got orders for 780 shirts, including some from Fitzpatrick’s family.
The shirts cost around three dollars to print and sold for five. Makenzi and her family decided that all of the money earned on the t-shirt sales would go directly into Fitzpatrick’s family’s pockets to help with any needs they had after their loss. In all, the t-shirts raised around two thousand dollars.
“I think it’s going to be so overwhelming for them, just to know so many people cared about them and encouraged them,” smiled Coder. “Everything’s going to be okay. People love them and God loves them.”
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Sapulpa lost to Bixby Friday night, but everyone that entered the stadium learned a lesson from a teenage girl. Amidst seemingly insurmountable tragedy, a senior in high school found a way to brighten the outlook for an entire community. When buried in doubt, a young woman cared enough to lift stranger’s spirits.
One person made a difference in the lives of those previously touched by a fallen football player, and two communities were joined by football.
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