NFL Star Willis McGahee, Towson University Head Coach Rob Ambrose and Reservoir High School Coach Rick Trott band together to provide assistance for a local family struck by tragedy.
BALTIMORE FEBRUARY 22, 2011 As a former Towson University football player and U.S. Marine, Joe Sclafani, Jr. would never have seen this coming. Unexpectedly and without explanation, the C5/C6 disk bulged and compressed Joe’s spinal cord. During surgery, his doctor found another obstacle, an infectious abscess that had encapsulated itself into his spinal cord as well. The pressure from both the disk and abscess resulted in Sclafani becoming a quadriplegic.
Although they lived in a ranch-style house, Joe could only access twenty percent of the house on his own. He could not access his daughter’s bedrooms to read to them, kiss them goodnight, or play with them due to the size of the hallway and the entrance sizes of their rooms. Since the master bedroom door was widened, Joe could access it; however, in order to fit the lift needed to move Joe and necessary medical supplies, he and his wife, Monica slept in separate single beds and their dressers and clothes were kept in the garage. The one bathroom in the house was not accessible with an ever smaller entrance than the girls’ rooms. Joe had not been able to feel running water for about a year, getting “bird baths” every day lying in bed.
The Sclafani house needed some modifications and a modest addition to create a handicapped-accessible house that would change the quality of their lives and assist Joe with being more independent. Joe and Monica had thought about making some renovations to their house but the money they receive from disability is not even enough to pay their current monthly bills.
Three guys, all from different walks of football lives, band together to change that.
Rick Trott, who currently coaches football at Reservoir High School, received an email from his old college football coach, Rob Ambrose, the Head Coach at Towson University. The email from Ambrose which spoke of Sclafani and his situation, was sent to the football alum of TU imploring them to find a way to help a “brother” in need and thus a chain of events began that would change the Sclafani’s lives.
Trott had never met the man that was described in the email. Sclafani had left TU a year before Trott ever stepped on the field there. Still, the letter spoke to him and he knew he had to do something. Trott called his neighbor and friend, NFL player Willis McGahee to come up with a plan to help. McGahee knew exactly who the next call should go out to. Almost immediately upon arriving in Baltimore McGahee wanted to give back to the community and knowing that area Realtors are always in touch with neighborhoods and communities, a partnership between the running back and the Realtors was formed. A call was placed, a few emails exchanged, and within a couple weeks, the Sclafani family was contacted by the Maryland Partnership for Housing Foundation which administers the program Maryland Home Makeover. The news was just what the family had been wishing for. They would become the recipients of a brand new addition to their home which would be outfitted with handicap accessibilities the Sclafani family could only dream of.
“The brotherhood of football is a bond that only those who have played can truly understand its depth,” remarks Ambrose, “In my career there have been numerous prideful moments both as a player and a coach but the outpouring of support for the Sclafani family and the active participation by those in the larger football family is, in a word, awesome.” Trott adds, “When my college football career was cut short at Towson due to an injury, Coach Ambrose kept me around and taught me the coaching trade. I made a promise then that if I ever had the chance to repay him I would. When he sent the email about Joe’s situation I knew Willis could help.”
McGahee has kept in touch throughout the renovation process and has a few more surprises in store for the Sclafani family during the ribbon cutting for their new home in a few weeks. “I’m really happy with how this project has turned out,” McGahee says. “Knowing that Joe will be able to access his little girls’ rooms to say goodnight and will be able to actually roll himself into the shower now is just huge. I’ve been so blessed in my life and career and the chance to share a little of that has been very humbling. I’m so honored to have been a part of this.”
