COSHOCTON — A week later, his presence could still be felt some 50 miles away.
It was Aug. 22 when freshman Mayson White suffered a fractured vertebrae in his neck in an on-field collision during the Trojans’ Week 1 game against Apple Creek Waynedale.
Surgery was successful at Akron Children’s Hospital, but White was left paralyzed due to the pressure on his spine as a result of the injury. He remains hospitalized, though he spoke for the first time on Aug. 29 after having his ventilator removed.
“It has just been devastating,” TV Athletic Booster President Rebecca Congdon said. “I think a lot of us are still in shock.”
In the time since, counselors at the school helped the players, students and coaches cope with the magnitude of the loss. Few had witnessed such a scene.
Athletic director Steve Franks, who has been at Tusky Valley since 1997 in a variety of capacities, credited first-year coach Cade Adams on how he has helped the team handle everything occurring around them.
Franks said Mayson’s injury was among the scariest moments he has encountered in sports. He was head boys basketball coach for 19 years before becoming AD.
“I really credit them — they have done a great job,” Franks said of the coaches. “Our community has done a great job of shielding our athletes from media, from outside sources and those kind of things. We’ve handled it pretty well, I think. Everybody’s thoughts are with Mayson, of course.”
Meanwhile, the Tusky community has held multiple fundraisers headed by the boosters to help the White family raise money for hospital costs.
Among the wide-ranging efforts was Dumont Sporting Goods, based in Dover, printing some 800 T-shirts that fans wore to the team’s Week 2 game against Coshocton at Stewart Field.
Coshocton, a member of the Muskingum Valley League, was among several schools in the region to hold “whiteout” themes in White’s honor for their Week 2 games.
Another was a few miles up U.S. 36 for River View’s home game with Coshocton County rival Ridgewood. All gate proceeds were to be donated to the White family, Congdon said.
When the Tusky Valley bus crash that killed six people and injured 18 others occurred in 2023, many of those fundraising efforts were handled through the Trojan Foundation.
After Congdon confirmed through the school district administration that the boosters could handle this fundraising, she immediately went to work trying to round up ideas.
By Saturday afternoon, however, word had been relayed to Congdon from the White family of the extent of Mayson’s injury.
“Everything just kind of shifted in that moment,” Congdon said. “It became not just fundraising at this immediate need of this weekend. That became so much bigger than I think any of us could imagine.”
It was then that a group message was started between the boosters and family to discuss what could be done.
They built from strength in numbers. Like the aftermath of the crash, the response to this was swift and far-reaching.
Multiple fundraisers for the White family, including a GoFundMe page, have been established to assists with hospital costs. Sixty-thousand dollars in 872 total donations had been raised as of late Aug. 29.
Among them was a day-long dining fundraiser held at Canal Street Diner in Bolivar, where half of the proceeds earned that day went to the family. Another was held at Texas Roadhouse in New Philadelphia, which donated 10 percent of its proceeds from that day’s sales.
In Louisville, just east of Canton, Shooter’s Sports Bar and Billiards took donations and held a raffle drawing for a basket featuring a variety of sports-related items. The proceeds went to the White family.
Multiple area schools were accepting donations at their games, including at Waynedale.
At Coshocton, football parent Ashley Shearn organized a gift basket with almost 40 donated items from various individuals and businesses that was auctioned off. Additionally, Coshocton’s biddy league football programs also donated all of its parking money from the game, which exceeded $1,000.
Canton-based Ron Marhoffer GMC donated a new GMC Terrain that will be raffled off for $52 each on Dec. 23. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the White family.
“It’s just a tremendous place to live and our communities support each other,” Franks said. “They have been fantastic with their support.”
Congdon wasn’t surprised at the outpouring. She had seen it many times previously.
“We do rally about,” Congdon said. “I think we’re good old-fashioned people. I really do. We come together, and we truly care about each other and each other’s families. You see that even when tragedy doesn’t set in. We cheer for each other’s kids, and if you ever come to a Tusky Valley game against another opponent we’re not screaming at other kids. It’s good fun and good fun for our kids to be on a team.”
Fans from both schools at the Coshocton game wore white, with most everyone on the TV sideline wearing Mayson shirts. Congdon said they will likely have another sale as many students couldn’t make the trip to Coshocton.
Amanda White spoke to the team prior to the Coshocton game to inform them that Mayson had been taken off intubation and was able to speak for the first time since the surgery. Mayson was able to speak to older brother Jesse, a senior linebacker and, according to Congdon, wanted him to” go win the game for me.”
The team responded with a hearty effort in a 29-23 defeat, one that gave them a chance to drive for a potential go-ahead score in the closing minute. They were stopped on downs on fourth-and-inches.
Franks feels the team will continue to play inspired. Amanda White’s speech definitely played its part.
“It kind of eased everybody a little bit,” Franks said. “Her attitude was great. Our kids have held it together and put in a good week of practice, so we will see how things go.”
sblackbu@gannett.com; X: @SamBlackburnTR
This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: How the Tusky Valley community has rallied in support of football player Mayson White
Reporting by Sam Blackburn, The Times-Reporter / The Times-Reporter
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