The Pittsburg High School football team files into the gymnasium and down into the locker room as another practice ends.
However, like on many nights, the work isn’t over for the Purple Dragons senior quarterback Dylan Meier. Some evenings it would be throwing extra passes to his younger brother Kerry, a freshman. Tonight, the brothers take a stroll down to coach Merle Clark’s classroom for an hour or so of film study.
You see, Dylan had a goal. He wanted to direct the Dragons back to the Class 5A state championship game after falling to Salina South in the title game the year before. You could rest assured that Dylan would do everything in his control to make that happen.
That’s the way Dylan was. Win or lose, he didn’t do things halfway. He knew life is too precious to waste any time going through the motions. Whether it be football, friendships, or a new adventure, Dylan was going to relish every moment.
These are the types of things that come to mind when I think about Dylan. Like many others in Pittsburg and throughout the state of Kansas, I have been thinking a lot about Dylan lately as the days on the calendar approach the one-year anniversary of his tragic death.
On April 19, it will be one year since the quarterback, who was All-State at Pittsburg and a starter for the Kansas State Wildcats, died in a hiking accident in Arkansas.
My time with Dylan was limited, but I believe that if there’s anything that can help ease the grieving process it’s the knowledge he touched everyone who had the good fortune of meeting him and that he squeezed as much out of life as a 26-year-old possibly could.
In addition to his time in Kansas, Dylan played football in Germany and Italy, served as a bodyguard for Italian fashion models, worked in a vineyard overseas, ran with the bulls in Spain, and went skydiving in the Alps. His next plans included coaching football in Europe, teaching English in Korea and possibly a return to Kansas State as a graduate assistant.
“He had a real zest for life,” Merle Clark, Dylan’s former coach and a family friend said days after the accident. “He lived a lot in his 26 years.”
That zest for life is the basis of the Get Busy Livin’ Foundation that was established in Dylan’s honor. The mission is to provide support for individuals and groups of people who embody the values that Dylan pursued: adventure, fitness, curiosity, generosity and that daily zest for life experiences. The foundation hopes to break down the boundaries that keep people from living life to the fullest by providing academic/athletic scholarships, sports camp sponsorships, scholarships for students traveling abroad, and community service needs and other activities that motivate, inspire leadership and build character.
The organization’s first big fundraising event will be the Get Busy Livin’ Run/Walk on Saturday, May 7 at Hutchinson Field, where Dylan led the Dragons to numerous wins in high school. The event includes a 5-kilometer race, a 1-mile friendship walk and a kid's fun run. Participants who sign up online by April 22 will be guaranteed a Get Busy Livin’ T-shirt with the No. 9, the number Dylan sported in his days at Pittsburg High and Kansas State. The 5-kilometer course, which will begin and end at Hutchinson Field, also will make the shape of the No. 9 in honor of Dylan.
The event is open to the public, but suggested donations are $25 for the 5K race and $25 for the 1-mile walk.
If you would like to participate, donate or volunteer to work the event, please go to www.sportkc.org/getbusy. To learn more about the organization, go to www.getbusylivin.org. Additional information can be found on the group’s Facebook page, and those with questions can email getbusylivinfoundation@gmail.com.
Please come out and celebrate Dylan’s life by staying active. If you are unable to attend the event, please consider donating to this worthy cause and help others get the opportunity to live life to the fullest.
As far as Dylan’s goal of getting back to the 5A title game? Of course, the Dragons did that in front of a large crowd at Pittsburg State’s Carnie Smith Stadium in 2001. Yes, PHS eventually lost to Salina Central. However, the message from Dylan and the Get Busy Livin’ Foundation isn’t all about winning or losing. Instead, it’s about giving it your all, enjoying the ride and getting the most out of life. Dylan and the rest of the Dragons certainly accomplished that.
Please support this cause to help others do the same.
Mark Schremmer is a Pittsburg native who has been a journalist in Kansas since 2000. He currently serves as assistant news editor at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached at markschremmer@yahoo.com.
Use your Facebook account to add a comment or start a discussion. Posts are subject to Facebook's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your Facebook name, photo & other personal information you make public on Facebook will appear with your comment.
