Gladys Bettis
Gladys Bettis
felt games husband parents planning took
He wanted us there, and as parents, it was something we always wanted to do. It took a lot of arranging, a lot of schedule-changing, and a lot of planning to make it all happen, but my husband and I felt like we should be there for Jerome. So we went to his games - all of his games.
oh
Oh no. ... He said that? Oh, my God.
happy last
Personally, I would be happy if this was his last game. I want to see him go out on top.
bowl ending given life man perfect super win
There's nothing I want more for Jerome than to see him win the Super Bowl here in his hometown. It would be the perfect ending for a young man who has given his life to the sport of football.
banks husband nice rink year
My husband would get the hose out to make that rink every year -- it even had nice banks made of snow.
afraid asthma care carrying coast college following game kept somebody staff step stopped took training
At first, we went to every game because he has asthma and we were afraid that somebody wouldn't have an inhaler. We stopped carrying the inhalers when he went to college because the training staff took care of that, but we've kept following him from coast to coast every step of the way.
football proud
That's his football family, so we were proud to have them here. They've been a part of our lives, too.
boy bring brought guys motivated played took
I am so elated. It took this boy 13 years to make it back home. Those guys brought him home. He motivated those guys and they played for him to bring him back home.
across following forth kept miles routine separated stuck
But we kept following him, back and forth across the country, every game, every year. It was hard, but it was a routine we started and stuck with. The years, the miles - nothing separated the family.
almost blows people shown treat
It's almost indescribable. To come home, and to see the people treat him the way they have, it just blows me away. The people have shown him that he's still No. 1 in the city. It was just heartwarming.
regret single time trip
We've probably experienced it all, at one time or another. It often wasn't easy, but it was important enough to us to make it happen. And we don't regret a single trip - especially not now.
afraid game needed somebody
We went to every game because we were afraid that somebody wouldn't have an inhaler there when he needed it.
caught church donated fixed happened
We donated it to a church and had it fixed up, but we don't know what happened to it. I didn't even know it caught on fire.
When we did that, I said I would never do that again.