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Team gives fellow athlete the chance of a lifetime

Andy Hern | Studio Graphics

Mitchell Greathouse wears the No. 10 jersey for the Table Rock Middle School Falcons.

By Tracy Farnham | The News Herald

Published: November 9, 2009

MORGANTON - Mitchell Greathouse is your average sixth-grade athlete at Table Rock Middle School.
Except for one thing. He's confined to a wheelchair.
Mitchell is active in sports — walk-and-roll T-ball, wheelchair basketball, bowling and swimming — but being part of his middle school's football team is a dream come true.
"He was born with cerebral palsy and has been in that chair all of his life, so it was special for him to be on this team," said his grandmother, Wanda DeHart.
Earlier this school year, one of Table Rock's assistant football coaches approached head coach Jeff Haught about the possibility of Mitchell's becoming involved with the sport.
Haught and Mitchell's dad, David Greathouse, already knew each other.
Haught said, "I started talking with some folks about the possibility and the team was 100 percent behind it. That says volumes about our kids. We gave him a couple of jerseys and he only missed one game because he was sick."
DeHart added, "It was very special for the boys to put him on the team."
Mitchell's dad said, "He gets the football gene from me and he is a Carolina Panther fan. We watch the game every Sunday. He is revved up about sports and revved up about football."
During warm-ups before Table Rock football games Mitchell was out on the field with his team.
"He was so excited that he got to be out with the players, and he got involved," Greathouse said.
As the games progressed, the offensive players and coaches came to him on the sidelines for strategy meetings.
DeHart said, "The players would all talk to him and they made it very special for him."
Although Mitchell is very competitive, especially with the Wii, his dad said, "It was not about competition, but involvement. He feels like he's part of the team."
During a recent pep rally, the team honored Greathouse with football signed by all of his teammates. He received a standing ovation from the school, DeHart added.
His dad said, "I am very proud of Mitchell and I am very, very proud of the team. They accepted him and accepted him unanimously. It gives a real strong sense of community. Even though he is a little different from the rest of the kids, they aren't looking at that or treating him any different."
With football season complete, Mitchell is practicing with the Got Wheels basketball team and bowls in tournaments on Saturdays.
"He competes against other kids in wheelchairs. It is friendly competition, all in fun," Greathouse said.
Haught is very proud of his players' attitude.
"Football is not the most important thing in the world; it is how kids react to people and this team reacted very well this year," Haught said. "If you care about people, everything will take care of itself. And these kids care about people."
As another example, he mentioned the players' pulling up their long pink socks for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
"We had a pretty good football team, but we have better kids than a football team," Haught said.