{"id":127536,"date":"2019-09-30T15:53:56","date_gmt":"2019-09-30T19:53:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/?p=127536"},"modified":"2019-10-04T11:21:00","modified_gmt":"2019-10-04T15:21:00","slug":"for-bates-football-6-year-old-brayden-austin-is-their-captain-courageous","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/2019\/09\/30\/for-bates-football-6-year-old-brayden-austin-is-their-captain-courageous\/","title":{"rendered":"For Bates football, 6-year-old Brayden Austin is their captain courageous"},"content":{"rendered":"

Back in August during a preseason football practice at Garcelon Field, the coaches announced that it was time for \u201cup downs.\u201d On the whistle, everyone gets down on the ground and then jumps back up, over and over until the drill is complete.<\/p>\n

For head coach Malik Hall, the exercise is a metaphor, a life lesson that extends beyond physical fitness. All you have to do is keep getting back up \u2014\u00a0 whether it\u2019s after a tackle on the football field or when facing adversity in life.<\/p>\n

Fast-forward to a recent practice before the team\u2019s first game. Running onto the field comes 6-year-old Brayden Austin. Hall introduces him to the team as someone who has had a lot of ups and downs in life \u2014 someone who gets up every single day and keeps on fighting.<\/p>\n

The little boy will join the team as an honorary captain this year, Hall announces.<\/p>\n

\"Brayden<\/a>

With seniors Jon Lindgren of Plainville, Conn., Zach Doyon of Eliot, Maine, and Matt Golden of New Bedford, Mass., Brayden Austin walks onto Garcelon Field for the pre-game coin toss vs. Middlebury on Sept. 21. (Theophil Syslo\/Bates College)<\/p><\/div>\n

Austin hops into the stretch line. He\u2019s high-fiving everyone and copying every move in the warm-up. Instantly, Austin becomes a Bobcat.<\/p>\n

Back in March 2015 when Austin was 20 months old, his life changed forever. One Saturday, he woke up at 5 a.m., ate breakfast, and played with his older brother and his toys. \u201cIt was like any other Saturday morning,\u201d recalls his mother, Jennie Cloutier-Austin.<\/p>\n

Then came great pain and distress. Transported by Lifeflight helicopter to The Barbara Bush Children\u2019s Hospital in Portland, he endured two life-saving surgeries within 48 hours, losing all of his small intestine and half of his large intestine.<\/p>\n

He had suffered a midgut volvulus, in which the small intestine wraps tightly around the large intestine, cutting off blood circulation.<\/p>\n

\"Four<\/a>

Four years after his health crisis, Brayden Austin is full of energy and joy at the Bates football practice on Sept. 19. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/p><\/div>\n

While in the hospital, Austin suffered two major strokes and had more emergency surgeries. At one point, he was given less than a 50 percent chance of survival. Hospitalized for three months, he received his daily nutrition from a central line IV that ran for up to 24 hours a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is such a miracle,\u201d says his mother.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Now, four years later on a warm September afternoon, a visitor to Garcelon Field during football practice simply sees an energetic little boy. Though there have been setbacks along the way, and certain treatment regimens continue, his IV line is now gone and most of his nutrition comes from eating, the rest from a stomach feeding tube.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is such a miracle,\u201d says his mother, watching her son bounce around practice blocking pads on the sidelines. \u201cHe may not understand the ins and outs of the game, but he knows how amazing it is to be a part of the team,\u201d especially when his fellow Bobcats give him a fist bump and a \u2018Hey Brayden!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest thing that stands out to me about having Brayden around the team is his positivity,\u201d says Angus Lamond \u201921, an offensive lineman from Portsmouth, N.H. \u201cHe\u2019s had to deal with adversity his whole life, yet when he\u2019s around the team he\u2019s always so happy. It reminds us all to stay positive throughout adversity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"During

With enthusiasm, honorary team captain Brayden Austin joins the Bates football team for practice on Sept 19. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/p><\/div>\n

From a grave diagnosis, Austin is now thriving because he had access to expert medical professionals and a world-class pediatric intensive care unit at The Barbara Bush Children\u2019s Hospital. And that\u2019s how the connection between Austin and Bates football began.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrayden gets up each day and says, \u2018Bring it on.\u2019”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Last year, the college hosted a Children\u2019s Miracle Network dance marathon fundraiser on campus, raising over $19,000 to benefit the Bush facility. The event organizer, Natalie Brewer \u201921 of New Britain, Conn., connected Hall and Austin\u2019s family, who live nearby in Sabattus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you see Brayden, a child who has had to fight for his life, that gives you a new perspective on your purpose,\u201d says Hall. \u201cAnd I want our student-athletes to know to do things for a bigger purpose. You don\u2019t play just for yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Sept. 21, Austin enjoyed another thrill, taking part in the official coin toss prior to the home opener vs. Middlebury. Holding hands with his fellow Bates captains and his 10-year old brother, Carter, they walked together to midfield.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrayden gets up each day and says, \u2018Bring it on\u2019 to whatever the world has to give him,\u201d says Matt Golden \u201920, a running back from New Bedford, Mass.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look to follow Brayden\u2019s example: If we get knocked down, we strive to get up, look our challenges in the face, and say, \u2018Bring it on,\u2019 in football and in life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Captain<\/a>

Brayden Austin gives a leg hug to Phil Simplicio \u201920 of West Hartford, Conn., during practice at Garcelon Field on Sept. 19. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Six-year-old Brayden Austin, who bravely overcame a grave medical condition four years ago, is this year’s honorary captain for the Bates football team. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1237,"featured_media":127535,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_hide_ai_chatbot":false,"_ai_chatbot_style":"","associated_faculty":[],"_Page_Specific_Css":"","_bates_restrict_mod":false,"_table_of_contents_display":false,"_table_of_contents_location":"","_table_of_contents_disableSticky":false,"_is_featured":false,"footnotes":"","_bates_seo_meta_description":"Brayden Austin, age 6, who overcame a grave medical condition four years ago becomes honorary captain for the Bates football team. ","_bates_seo_block_robots":false,"_bates_seo_sharing_image_id":0,"_bates_seo_sharing_image_twitter_id":0,"_bates_seo_share_title":"","_bates_seo_canonical_overwrite":"","_bates_seo_twitter_template":""},"categories":[24,30,31],"tags":[10875,11666],"class_list":["post-127536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-athletics","category-civic-engagement","category-lewiston-auburn","tag-football","tag-malik-hall"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1237"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127536"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":127692,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127536\/revisions\/127692"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127535"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}