Curtis Kingfisher, son of Floyd and Rhonda Kingfisher of Salina, Oklahoma, was born with serious health challenges. At first, the doctors gave the Kingfishers no hope at all. Even when Curtis had rallied and was well enough to go home, they predicted that his kidneys would fail altogether by the time he was five or maybe six years old. Floyd remembers hearing, “He’ll never be able to grow up like a normal boy.” His reply, “I don’t care. He’s my son. I want to take him home.”
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The OU Softball Team has been a perennial powerhouse in the Big 12 Conference. Following appearances in the Women’s College World Series in 2003 and 2004, the team finished the 2007 season as Big 12 Champions. A standout on those teams was Mariee Mena, from Escondido, California. Mariee is described by Coach Patty Gasso as, “…one of the fiercest competitors to ever play in a Sooner uniform.”
The second of four children born to Adam and Isela Mena, Mariee grew up in a ‘sports’ family. Father, Adam, played college baseball and is an avid golfer. Older brother, Steven, played football and attended college on a golf scholarship. Her sister, Mariesa, played softball, volleyball and field hockey. And youngest brother, Anthony, played baseball and shows promise in golf.
Mariee tried out for her first softball team when she was 10 years old, and by the time she reached high school, she was participating in four sports and had established herself as a star player in softball, volleyball and tennis. Her performance and awards at Escondido High School were so impressive that she earned a scholarship to play softball for the University of Oklahoma. Mariee’s first season as a Sooner came in 2003.
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When he was 10, Curtis began to show the signs of kidney disease. In January 2009, 12-year-old Curtis was put on the waiting list for a kidney transplant. A tube was surgically inserted into his stomach in March, and Curtis began home dialysis treatments two weeks later. Floyd describes his son’s condition, “He was weak, always tired and tied to a machine for 10 hours at a time.”
The ‘Make-A-Wish Foundation’ agreed to grant a wish made by Curtis that year. The only thing we wanted was to be a ‘Sooner for a Day’. Officials at the University of Oklahoma agreed, and plans for the big day were made.
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Mariee remained active in softball after her playing days ended at OU. “Adam coached her when she played for the San Diego Renegades,” shares Isela. “Mariee got that nurturing from her dad, and she continued it because she loved coaching.” Mariee also became a tutor and was soon hired as a teaching assistant at Windsor Hills Elementary in the Putnam City school district.
Mariee’s younger brother, Anthony, played football in the Fall of 2009. During practice he sustained an injury to his knee that required surgery. Mariee had the same surgery on her knee when she was in high school, and she was concerned. The day of his surgery, October 2, 2009, Mariee called Anthony early. “She told him what to expect… and that she loved him,” remembers Isela.
Back home that evening, Isela was in the living room and Adam was helping Anthony with the passive motion machine in the bedroom. There was a knock at the door, and two police officers asked to speak to the parents of Mariee Mena. Isela shares, “That’s when you know. Your heart just falls. Something is wrong.”
Mariee was involved in a motorcycle accident in Norman and had sustained severe head injuries. The officers provided all the information that they had, including the surgeon’s name and direct cell phone number. No flights were available until the following morning, so there was nothing left to do but pray. Concerned family members joined Adam, Isela and Anthony in their home for a long, sleepless night.
The phone rang at Patty Gasso’s house around midnight. “As soon as I heard that Mariee was in an accident, I had an absolute sick feeling in my stomach,” shares the coach. “I immediately got out of bed, dressed and went down to the hospital.”
Coach Gasso met the Mena family at the airport the next day. At the hospital, teammates, players, students and parents, teachers and friends had gathered to be near Mariee. Isela was amazed at the show of support. “It was breathtaking, it was a huge crowd.”
The news was not good, and Mariee would not recover from her injuries. But Isela praised the care that her daughter received. “The nurses were wonderful, they took such good care of her.” The entire family was permitted to stay with Mariee in the ICU room designed for two visitors. Over the course of the next three days, all of Mariee’s friends got to see her, play music and sing for her, and say good-bye.
During this difficult time, Adam and Isela learned of a decision their daughter made. Isela recalls, “Mariee marked on her driver’s license to be an organ donor, and because she did that she made it a very easy transition for us. She was a blood donor when she was in high school, so the next step for Mariee was to be an organ donor.”
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Floyd Kingfisher was working maintenance at the elementary school in Spavinaw when he got the phone call. They checked into Children’s Hospital, and Curtis received his new kidney the next day, on October 6th. Floyd read the newspaper while they sat in the waiting room. “There was an article about Mariee and her accident,” Floyd remembers. “I think God wanted us to know who Curtis’ donor was.”
Apparently Floyd was right. Both families expressed a desire to meet, and the wheels were set in motion. On October 31st, ‘Make-A-Wish’ sent Curtis to the University of Oklahoma to be a ‘Sooner for a Day’. He toured the football facilities, met the coaches and players, and was scheduled to make the coin toss at the start of the game against Kansas State.
Floyd and Curtis were sitting together on the sideline when head softball coach, Patty Gasso, introduced herself and asked if the softball team could have a photo made with Curtis. But the tears in her eyes said much more. Being close friends with the Mena family, the coach became emotional when she saw Curtis. “I just stood there and stared at him, and he probably thought ‘What is this lady doing?’” admits the coach. “I immediately felt Mariee again.”
Yes, Coach Gasso knew.
She gathered herself and asked if Curtis would be interested in watching her team play a game. He could even throw out the first pitch. Floyd remembers, “The coach said she was in touch with the Mena family, and asked if we’d like to meet them someday. I told her ‘of course’.”
The Sooner softball team met the Tigers of Missouri for a doubleheader in Norman, on March 28, 2010. Before the game, the Menas of Escondido, California, met the Kingfishers from Salina, Oklahoma. Coach Gasso, who stood in the background watching, offers these comments, “You could see Isela and her family having comfort, loving on the Kingfisher family; knowing that through their own pain, they brought joy to another family.”
Curtis Kingfisher and Anthony Mena warmed up together, and both threw out a first pitch to start the game. Family members cheered and shouted words of encouragement. They could see Curtis and feel Mariee with him.
Since that time the Menas and Kingfishers have stayed in touch. The University of Oklahoma awarded Mariee with a posthumous degree at the May 2010 Convocation Ceremony in Norman. When Isela and family accepted Mariee’s diploma, Curtis and his parents were there in attendance. And on August 22nd, Curtis called the Menas to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to Mariee.
“We’ve become very close with Curtis,” shares Isela. “The wish of this little boy was to be an ‘OU Sooner for a Day’. Thanks to Mariee, Curtis is now an ‘OU Sooner for Life’.”
