Pulling and praying for No. 7

By ALYSSA WICKENHAGEN
HIGHLAND HIGH SCHOOL
Under the Friday night lights, one of the captains — a quarterback — started to complain of numbness in his legs and said his head was hurting.
Coach Shane Roy yelled from sidelines, telling him to go down, or stop the play. The stands fell silent. When the ambulance drove onto the football field, heads bowed in prayer.
Matthew Newman, a 17-year-old junior at Highland High School, was taken to Yakima Regional Medical and Cardiac Center, where he underwent surgery. He had suffered head trauma, and the surgery relieved pressure on his brain.
From that Friday night — Sept. 18 — to Oct. 9, Newman remained at Regional. Then he was transferred to Children’s Hospital in Seattle.
He returned home to Naches Heights at the end of December — just in time to spend New Year’s at home with his family.
It’s still uncertain when he might return to school.
For nearly three months in Seattle, Newman had been working on the rehabilitation floor, where things were beginning to look up. He regained communication skills — from saying a few words to carrying on complete conversations, talking on the phone, even texting.
And throughout his recovery — which is ongoing — his family — mother Marla Newman, father Randy Newman, older brother Patrick Newman and younger brother Benjamin Newman — has been by his side.
They’re not the only ones offering their support, though. Support for Matthew is coming from all over Cowiche and Tieton and beyond.
Seattle Mariner Dan Wilson heard Matthew’s story and decided to stop by Children’s to visit him. Talking with the ball player brightened Matthews’s day. In fact, it was one of the highlights of his time in the hospital.
So was a recent visit from Seattle Seahawks Matthew Hasselbeck and John Carlson.
On the homefront, community members have organized fundraisers — from a car wash and potato feed to T-shirt sales. They’ve collected donations, sent get-well cards, and made pins, posters and jerseys printed with Matthew’s number.
Lucky No. 7.
They’ve also started a blog — raise7formatthew.blogspot.com — and updated his Caringbridge site at www.caringbridge.org/visit/matthewnewman1.

“This has made us stronger as a community, and has made our football team stronger,” says Coach Roy, who also teaches health and social studies at Highland High School. He’s known Matthew for about five years and volunteered at a couple of the fundraisers for him.
Football season is over now. But while it continued without Matthew, Coach Roy worried — for Matthew as well as the rest of the players.
“Games since Matthew was injured — for our team — have been difficult,” he said. “He is a leader for the team, and our boys gravitate towards him.”
Antonio Gonzales, a 15-year-old sophomore and wide-receiver, volunteered at the car wash.
“It’s hard playing without Matthew, because he is a very good athlete and a great captain,” Gonzales said. “He kept our team glued together, and kept us a team.”
Sixteen-year-old junior Tyler Hakala, one of the team captains, had to step up and take over Matthews’s position on the field. That was a difficult move.
“It’s hard jumping into a new position, especially after the situation,” said Hakala, who also helped with the car wash.
“It’s very hard losing a key player everyone likes,” he said. “It drained us emotionally, but brought us closer together as a team.”
Missing Matthew — and coming together to support and raise money for him — has affected the entire junior class, he said.
“I think it brought us together. It would have been nice to come closer under better circumstances. But this is what we as a class need to give to Matthew.”
Students at Highland come mainly from the small city of Tieton and community of Cowiche, both located west of Yakima.
With a total of about 3,000 people, these two towns are very small. News about Matthew hit everyone hard.
“For the first couple days, it was like a black cloud was over our community. I feel everyone was in shock. I know I was. But then everyone starting coming out of the woodwork and asking what we can do, how can we help?” recalled 25-year-old athletic director Elyse Maras.
“It was not for recognition or self-achievement. It was for the love of this boy,” she said. “In such a helpless situation, people were open in all ways to help.
“I was surprised at the amount of people, the type of people that were offering help,” Maras continued. “They weren’t just family friends, or friends of Matthew, or part of the school. … Matthew has obviously touched many lives.
“We were brought together on a tragedy, and we owe it to Matthew.”
Matthew’s girlfriend, 15-year-old sophomore Lisa Sorenson, has been trying to stay positive.
“I was scared and nervous at first,” she said. “I felt we would be separated by this. But when I first visited him in Seattle, I felt he needed me more than ever, and this has definitely made our relationship stronger.
“I’m praying that he will be back to normal, and everything turns out well. Also, that we will grow from this, and stay strong.”
She’s not the only one praying for Matthew.
“I am praying he has a mental, physical and emotional recovery,” Maras said. “I think about him everyday, and when I do I pray for him. I pray he gets past this and beyond this.”
Dylan Cummins, a 16-year-old junior, grew up with Matthew.
“I’m praying for a flawless recovery and to have him back in school as soon as possible,” he said. “We miss him.”

— Alyssa Wickenhagen is a freshman at Highland High School and a member of the Herald-Republic’s Unleashed journalism program for students.