TUSCARAWAS COUNTY, Ohio (WOIO/Gray News) – Both family and community members are praying for a high school football player from Ohio who was paralyzed by a tackle during a game.
Mayson White is a 15-year-old freshman football player at Tuscarawas Valley High School. He fractured his C4 vertebra during Friday night’s game against Waynedale, according to his mother, Amanda White.
White says Mayson was taken to Akron Children’s Hospital, where the family was told the fracture was putting pressure on his spine. He underwent surgery and is still recovering.
Mayson White, a 15-year-old high school football player, is paralyzed after fracturing his C4 vertebra during a game, his mother says.(Courtesy of Amanda White)
Mayson currently has some movement in his right arm but not his hand nor his legs, according to his mother.
“Although this was not the outcome we had been hoping for, we are just soo thankful that he is still here with us!” she said.
White asked for prayers as Mayson recovers. He is expected to be in the hospital for at least a month before starting extensive therapy, according to a GoFundMe set up for the family.
“Our lives may look different, his life may look different, but he is still our Mayson! We love him soo much and are prepared to do everything he needs us to do and be everything he needs us to be!” White said.
Dr. Derek Varansky, the superintendent of the Tuscarawas Valley Local School District, posted on Facebook, asking the community for prayers for Mayson and his family.
“Mayson is a strong young man, and we are rooting for him,” Varansky wrote.
He said the district would provide support to Mayson’s family during his recovery.
Counselors were expected to meet with the football team and coaches. Varansky said the district will help cover the costs of counseling for any student who may need it.
The full response from Mayson’s mother can be read below:
He has some movement in his right arm but not his hand and he can shrug his shoulders, but nothing in his legs. And although this was not the outcome we had been hoping for, we are just soo thankful that he is still here with us!
Our lives may look different, his life may look different, but he is still our Mayson! We love him soo much and are prepared to do everything he needs us to do and be everything he needs us to be! Please hug your babies tight. If I could trade places with him, I would quicker than a heartbeat!
I close my eyes, but not for long. I just want to blink and it be a dream. Nothing on earth prepares you for this! Please continue to keep myself, my husband, and Mayson’s brother and sisters in your thoughts and prayers. We’re all hurting for Mayson.
He knows when we talk to him. He nods his head in acknowledgment. And still scrunches his cute little eyebrows in annoyance. Our sweet Mayson will always be our sweet Mayson!
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