Syracuse, N.Y. -- The family of injured Carthage football player Tyler Christman posted an emotional goodbye on Facebook Tuesday morning, praising him as a hero and saying his desire to be an organ donor will help him live on in the lives of others.
Christman, 14, was injured in a junior varsity game at West Genesee on Saturday. He collapsed on the sidelines and was rushed to Upstate, where surgery revealed extensive brain damage.
“We all prayed for a miracle to happen for you to be saved. Sadly the damage was just too much,” Tyler’s dad, Jason wrote in a Facebook post.
Jason didn’t elaborate on Tyler’s medical condition or whether there might have been any underlying issues that contributed to the shocking tragedy, such as whether he might have taken any bad hits to his head during his football career.
Jason described Tyler as an energetic teen who was liked by everyone he met.
“Ty has always strived to be good at everything he does. Our handsome, confident, outgoing, funny, loveable, helpful, athletic, fearless and always quick witted child will always be remembered by anyone who got the privilege of meeting him. We love you for being you. We will FOREVER be grateful to be your mom and dad and we will always be your number one fans. There are no words to express how much we admire and love you.
“You have experienced and done more in your 14 short years than most do in a lifetime. You have always been a “WATCH ME” kind of kid. And boy have we always loved watching you. Even though you made our hearts pound out of our chests at certain times. We loved watching you around your friends and teammates. You have a gravity that seems to pull people in with the way that you talked to & treated people. We have met so many great families because of you.”
Jason said Tyler can now be a miracle for others who need new organs.
“We always knew you were meant to stand out. This is not the way we envisioned it, but this is what we have been dealt,” Jason wrote. “You will always be our hero and soon you will be a hero to the people that receive your life saving Organ donations and a hero to all the family members who have spent many sleepless nights praying for their miracle. YOU will be that miracle. You will live on as such a wonderful gift of love and life.”
Related: Aunt of injured Carthage player to West Genesee JV: Don’t blame yourselves
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