Before each football game, the All Saints Catholic High School Cougars take time to pray together.

Oct. 21, however, they prayed not only for their own Cougar family, but also a young man far from Bay City whose story touched their hearts.

Ethan Glynn, a Minnesota freshman, was paralyzed from the shoulders down following a tragic neck and spinal cord injury during his first football game on Sept. 2.

Cathy McDonell, whose son Ryan is a senior on the All Saints Catholic football team, heard about Ethan’s story. She thought of her own brother, Brian Sheridan, who sustained a spinal cord injury decades ago. She thought of her son, whose season-ending ACL injury occurred the same week Ethan was paralyzed.

She knew they needed to reach out to Ethan.

“I want him to know that the Bay City All Saints football team were praying for his physical health and for him to remain positive. I want Ethan to know that his injury is just a detour,” she said. “I wanted Ethan and his family to know you can have a great life.” 

That’s why, in the hours before the Cougars took the field, the football team made a prayer blanket for a Minnesota 15-year-old they didn’t know but could imagine being on their team. As each player knotted the fleece together, they prayed individually for Ethan.  

“Those boys were rushing to the blanket. They were more interested in praying,” said Cathy, noting that the players were choosing to work on the blanket before eating the brisket dinner waiting for them. “They all seemed very sincere. They all wanted to pray. … They were very attentive. They were very concerned. They were very empathetic.” 

“We were happy to do it,” said Ryan. “I think everyone wanted to help. … It was a great way to get the team together. When they told us about the prayer blanket, everyone was very serious and genuine.”

Once the blanket was complete, they prayed together for his healing, for his inner strength and for his family. The Cougars mailed the blanket, a jersey, a hat, cards and a letter from Cathy’s brother Brian sharing a bit about his life as a quadriplegic. 

“It is our greatest hope that when Ethan and his family receive their Cougar Care package, they draw strength from knowing a football team states away not only cares for them, but is also praying for them,” the team wrote on Facebook. 

“Nowhere else can you bring a prayer blanket and ask everyone to tie a knot and say a prayer but a Catholic school,” Ryan noted. “I think we just found someone who needed prayers and prayed for him.” 

Cathy said she hopes that when Ethan receives the blanket, he can think of the team of his peers prayerfully creating it.  

“I just pray that when he has this blanket on his lap he will know that 30-plus players from Bay City, Michigan have touched this blanket and care. Every time he looks at those knots, he’ll see,” Cathy said. “Every kid said multiple prayers for strength (and) healing.”  

She also knows that the prayer blanket impacted the players who knotted it together, as they have followed Ethan’s story in the media and been inspired by his positive attitude. Cathy was also moved by seeing how the players approached the situation so prayerfully, even though it was their last football game and Senior Night. She hopes this gives them the opportunity to reflect on and thank God for their own health. 

“God is meant to be the center of our lives, the one who guides everything we do. To be able to recognize that, celebrate that and be grateful— that is amazing,” Cathy said. “That’s why we send our kids to Catholic school.”