DARRINGTON — Denver Harris’ favorite colors were Seahawks blue and green.
He liked red a lot, too, his mom said. But Randi Green steered her son toward their favorite team’s colors. He loved to deck himself out in Seahawks gear and watch the games. The 14-year-old came from a family of dedicated fans.
“I’d be screaming at the TV and he’d say, ‘Mom, you know they can’t hear you,’ ” Green recalled.
They might be able to hear her Sunday.
She’s going to the Super Bowl to cheer on the team that provided a special bond for her and her son.
Denver was one of 43 people killed in the Oso mudslide last year. Friends have described him as fun and funny, with a lot of energy and a love for sports and the outdoors.
This year, Green threw herself into football in her son’s memory.
“He loved the Seahawks,” she said. “The Seahawks have been amazing for me to focus on and get my mind off things.”
When the team secured a spot in the Super Bowl, Green’s friends and family wanted to make sure she could be there.
“We know that Denver’s cheering his mom on up there,” said Julie Newberry, a family friend.
She helped coordinate a fundraiser to pay for Green’s trip to Super Bowl XLIX. People donated airline miles to get her to Arizona and offered places to stay once she landed. Newberry asked her friend Tony Mace to help her raise money for the tickets.
Mace is a firefighter who helped with search efforts and volunteered with North County Family Services after the mudslide. He started an online campaign for Green five days ago at www.youcaring.com.
“Julie told me Randi had really used the Seahawks season this year as a therapy to help cope with losing (Denver),” Mace said. “We want her to have some kind of special, fun memory in the middle of this dark time she’s going through.”
Tuesday afternoon, a representative from the Seahawks called Mace and offered two tickets at face value for Green and a guest, meaning the price wouldn’t be marked up as they are through third-party sellers.
On Wednesday morning, he heard from Brian McCarthy, vice president of communications for the National Football League.
The NFL and the Seahawks had decided to provide the tickets for free.
It’s something the league does on a case-by-case basis when a story resonates with officials and fans, McCarthy said.
“It certainly struck a chord with us here at the league office,” he said. “It’s a very emotional story for everyone involved. Hopefully this can be a salute to the community that rallied around Randi.”
Green has two sisters, but neither is going to the Super Bowl. They asked Mace to take the second ticket and go with Green so she would have a friend there. Green and Mace just met Tuesday.
“I think it’s a great gesture that Tony’s coming, too,” McCarthy said. “It just goes to show how people can really come together.”
The fundraiser had collected $7,302 as of Wednesday afternoon. Now that the Super Bowl tickets are covered, that money will go toward season tickets for next year, Newberry said. If more money comes in, she plans to create a fund for other families who are grieving the loss of a child so they can go to things like football games, plays or concerts.
“It’s kind of unbelievable,” Green said. “I just think it’s so amazing that people got together and did this for me.”
Kari Bray: 425-339-3439; kbray@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
