Syracuse Danced Into Our Hearts
The excitement we had when Syracuse made the 2018 NCAA tournament was huge and we were quickly on Stub Hub when we found out they were playing in Dayton. We knew we were committed to getting seats and to support them on their journey in the dance. After I posted on Facebook about Syracuse coming to Dayton, we found out from a friend where the team was staying and when they were coming into town. We knew that we wanted to be there to welcome the team to Dayton so we planned to have a sitter come to our house to watch our boys.
Our friend worked for the hotel the team was staying at and she invited us to come to the celebration for when they arrived. Our youngest has autism so she knew she would have to let us know when they were coming so our sitter could get here. She was giving us time checks and then we got a text that the team would be there in ten minutes. Our sitter wouldn’t be there in time so we asked our two boys if they wanted to go and they said yes. Dominic our youngest has autism so transitioning to get out of the house and to a hotel in less than ten minutes is a huge task. He quickly jumped up and said, “I want to see the team.” My husband and I were pumped and we rushed everyone in the car.
We arrived to the hotel and then we were told, it was the band and cheerleaders not the basketball team yet. We were committed and we wanted to support the cheerleaders and band too. We raised our clackers and pom poms and cheered them on when they came in. We also got a picture of Dom and the cheerleaders. He said to them, “hello, ladies.” Priceless.
We found out the team was at Flemings and wouldn’t be there until 9:30 or 10:00 pm. Dominic’s bedtime is 7:30 so we didn’t think there was anyway that he would come back especially with all the noise. He looked at Ed and me and said, “I want to meet Coach.” In that moment, we knew we had to push aside bedtimes and not worry about it was a school night and just celebrate this step our son was taking and of course celebrate our favorite team.
I was getting nervous during the waiting time up to when they would arrive. I prayed they would be kind to my boys and hoped they may take a picture with them. One of my best friends brought her family and wore orange too. That was a lot for them being North Carolina fans but they were there to support our family and also the team. Having them there made me feel calm and supported and knew Dom would do better because they were there.
The team finally arrived and Coach Boeheim was the first to come in to the lobby. He had a smile on his face and waved. We cheered and watched a few of the players walk in and then Coach Boeheim stopped and the boys got a picture with him. It didn’t stop there and the night was perfect! The team continued to come in and of course we were also excited to see Gerry McNamara and Eric Devendorf. We were all excited to meet all the players but there was one player that I will always be a fan of for the rest of his career.
Frank Howard had not been feeling the best that week and he was one of the last players to come into the hotel lobby. He stopped and got a picture with my husband and boys. While getting set, he did not rush them and when Dom lost his footing a bit, Frank Howard was so patient and kind. I told Dominic to apologize to Mr. Howard and Frank said, “he did not do anything.” He just hugged Dom a little tighter and smiled for the picture. This pictured ended up on Syracuse’s Twitter feed and it made all my boys’ days.
So many times, athletes get a bad wrap. They are talked down on and many times the positives are not brought up. I was so extremely proud to be a Cuse fan that day. Everyone from the cheerleaders, to the coaches, to the players were beyond kind and happy to be there. They were respectful and did not rush to get to their hotel rooms.
It had been a long day for the entire Syracuse program and they could have blown by everyone but they didn’t. They stopped and acknowledged and celebrated the moment. Little did they know, they were making a milestone for our family and making a lasting memory that we will never forget. It was a night our son wanted to connect because he wanted to meet the team and coach. He cheered and supported them like a true fan. He was one of the crowd and part of the cheering squad. He was just that, an excited fan to cheer his team on for the big dance.
My husband and I attended the game the next night and were even more excited after meeting the team. We have always loved Syracuse but that night made me realize how much more I loved them. They made my family feel special and they took the time to be present.
The team will never really know how that night was for our family. They will not realize what it meant for our son to transition in less than ten minutes to get to the hotel to see the team, they will never realize that for our family to be in a loud hotel lobby with music playing loud means a lot, they will never realize that our son being up past 7:30 is a huge deal, they will never realize for us we were not only celebrating our team but the strides our son had made in that one night alone. Even though they will not know how very important they were to this moment and the steps our son made, we will know that those men and women will always have a special part of that memory for us. We will always cherish the day that Syracuse came to Dayton and we got to be a part of their journey in the dance.
