Latest news with #CalHOPECourageAward
Fox Sports
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
CalHOPE Courage Award winners Bermudez, Wang overcame physical and mental health challenges
Associated Press Will Bermudez was simply trying to chase down a pop fly when his life changed forever. In May 2019, the 17-year-old Air Force baseball commit collided with a teammate during a travel baseball game. The collision left Bermudez temporarily paralyzed from the waist down. He also temporarily lost five years of memory due to a traumatic brain injury. Bermudez suffered his first epileptic seizure two months after the injury and was ultimately diagnosed with myoclonic juvenile epilepsy. The Air Force rescinded its offer for him to play baseball there as a result. 'Going to the Air Force Academy, I wanted to be an aeronautical engineer. I wanted to build aircraft and then be able to fly the jets,' Bermudez said. 'But after my injury, math and chemistry and that stuff just didn't click how it used to before.' A difficult path forward awaited Bermudez, but his comeback culminated in a return to the diamond. Bermudez, now a redshirt senior at UC Irvine, and Mya Wang, a junior at Cal, have been selected as the recipients of the 2024-25 CalHOPE Courage Award. Wang will be presented her award Wednesday before the San Francisco Giants' game against the Kansas City Royals as part of Mental Health Awareness Month. Bermudez will receive his trophy during baseball practice this week. Presented monthly since February 2022, the CalHOPE Courage Award honors student-athletes at California colleges and universities who have overcome stress, anxiety, and mental trauma associated with personal hardships and adversity. Wang and Bermudez were selected from the 14 student-athletes who were honored throughout the year as those whose journeys best represent the spirit of the award. Bermudez engaged in extensive rehabilitation, as well as developed coping skills through mental health counseling. Steadily, Bermudez improved. He first enrolled at UC Davis as a student, and then transferred to Mount San Antonio College to give baseball another crack. Bermudez impressed on the diamond and got on the radar of UC Irvine's coaching staff. He transferred there in 2023, and became a starter at second base. 'I have a different gratitude towards the sport and towards life in general,' Bermudez said. 'There was a time where I thought I was never going to be able to walk again.' Bermudez is now majoring in psychology with a minor in sociology thanks to his personal experiences and is dedicated to helping people struggling with mental health challenges. Wang faced her own challenges when she was just two weeks away from graduation from University High School in Irvine. She was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. 'I felt very blindsided by it,' Wang said. 'Hearing the words, the doctor telling me I have cancer — mentally, I don't think I processed it fast because I just never expected to hear those words.' After her diagnosis, Wang faced a tumultuous two-year journey that included a pair of surgeries and much time spent soul-searching and learning mental coping skills. Wang withdrew from the lacrosse team as a freshman at Cal to focus on her healing and carve a path forward. There were times she wondered if she would ever come back to the sport and instead quit lacrosse. Yet Wang persisted. After recovering from her first surgery, Wang played for team Hong Kong at the 2022 World Championships, which reignited her drive to return to Cal's team. 'I was like, 'This is a commitment I made. I'm going to follow through on it and see how I feel,'' Wang said of the 2022 championships. 'And that was a big turning point for me. That in combination with reading all those self-help books and building upon my mental health.' Unfortunately for Wang, she required a second surgery. This time, though, she was much better prepared because of the coping mechanisms she had already developed. Wang ultimately returned to the Cal lacrosse team in 2023. Though Wang has since called it quits on her college lacrosse career, she couldn't be more proud of her comeback. 'It made me realize I don't have to give up,' Wang said. 'I still have so much ahead of me. Just because I had something happen to me doesn't mean I need to give up all my goals. If anything, it's more motivation to prove that I still have the ability to do that, even if something challenging happens to me." recommended in this topic
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
CalHOPE Courage Award winners Bermudez, Wang overcame physical and mental health challenges
Will Bermudez was simply trying to chase down a pop fly when his life changed forever. In May 2019, the 17-year-old Air Force baseball commit collided with a teammate during a travel baseball game. The collision left Bermudez temporarily paralyzed from the waist down. He also temporarily lost five years of memory due to a traumatic brain injury. Advertisement Bermudez suffered his first epileptic seizure two months after the injury and was ultimately diagnosed with myoclonic juvenile epilepsy. The Air Force rescinded its offer for him to play baseball there as a result. 'Going to the Air Force Academy, I wanted to be an aeronautical engineer. I wanted to build aircraft and then be able to fly the jets,' Bermudez said. 'But after my injury, math and chemistry and that stuff just didn't click how it used to before.' A difficult path forward awaited Bermudez, but his comeback culminated in a return to the diamond. Bermudez, now a redshirt senior at UC Irvine, and Mya Wang, a junior at Cal, have been selected as the recipients of the 2024-25 CalHOPE Courage Award. Wang will be presented her award Wednesday before the San Francisco Giants' game against the Kansas City Royals as part of Mental Health Awareness Month. Bermudez will receive his trophy during baseball practice this week. Advertisement Presented monthly since February 2022, the CalHOPE Courage Award honors student-athletes at California colleges and universities who have overcome stress, anxiety, and mental trauma associated with personal hardships and adversity. Wang and Bermudez were selected from the 14 student-athletes who were honored throughout the year as those whose journeys best represent the spirit of the award. Bermudez engaged in extensive rehabilitation, as well as developed coping skills through mental health counseling. Steadily, Bermudez improved. He first enrolled at UC Davis as a student, and then transferred to Mount San Antonio College to give baseball another crack. Bermudez impressed on the diamond and got on the radar of UC Irvine's coaching staff. He transferred there in 2023, and became a starter at second base. Advertisement 'I have a different gratitude towards the sport and towards life in general,' Bermudez said. 'There was a time where I thought I was never going to be able to walk again.' Bermudez is now majoring in psychology with a minor in sociology thanks to his personal experiences and is dedicated to helping people struggling with mental health challenges. Wang faced her own challenges when she was just two weeks away from graduation from University High School in Irvine. She was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. 'I felt very blindsided by it,' Wang said. 'Hearing the words, the doctor telling me I have cancer — mentally, I don't think I processed it fast because I just never expected to hear those words.' Advertisement After her diagnosis, Wang faced a tumultuous two-year journey that included a pair of surgeries and much time spent soul-searching and learning mental coping skills. Wang withdrew from the lacrosse team as a freshman at Cal to focus on her healing and carve a path forward. There were times she wondered if she would ever come back to the sport and instead quit lacrosse. Yet Wang persisted. After recovering from her first surgery, Wang played for team Hong Kong at the 2022 World Championships, which reignited her drive to return to Cal's team. 'I was like, 'This is a commitment I made. I'm going to follow through on it and see how I feel,'' Wang said of the 2022 championships. 'And that was a big turning point for me. That in combination with reading all those self-help books and building upon my mental health.' Advertisement Unfortunately for Wang, she required a second surgery. This time, though, she was much better prepared because of the coping mechanisms she had already developed. Wang ultimately returned to the Cal lacrosse team in 2023. Though Wang has since called it quits on her college lacrosse career, she couldn't be more proud of her comeback. 'It made me realize I don't have to give up,' Wang said. 'I still have so much ahead of me. Just because I had something happen to me doesn't mean I need to give up all my goals. If anything, it's more motivation to prove that I still have the ability to do that, even if something challenging happens to me."
Associated Press
11-03-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
CalHOPE Courage Award winners Glenn, Marin find their way on college teams after accident, loss
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — After a redshirt year to begin his collegiate soccer career at Santa Clara, goalkeeper Eddy Marin finally made his debut on the field in a starting role and had four saves against Stanford in October 2023. Including stopping a penalty kick. That ended up being his only game of the season. Just nine days later, Marin suffered a life-threatening scooter accident when he was struck by a car on his way to go study. That left him unconscious for more than a week, and then once he was awake he faced lost vision in his right eye and hearing loss in his left ear, a broken wrist and an aneurysm that needed surgery — the first of six procedures he would require during the coming months. He's back now, medically cleared and training for the fall season. Marin is a recipient of CalHOPE Courage Award for February along with Long Beach State senior beach and indoor volleyball player Natalie Glenn, who continued to pursue and accomplish her goals on and off the court after her father — former NFL wide receiver Terry Glenn — died in a car accident during her sophomore year at Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas. Marin is scheduled to receive his award during an on-field presentation Saturday at a San Jose Earthquakes game against Colorado at PayPal Park, while Glenn was recognized during a recent team practice. While still working through a long recovery from the accident and terrifying aftermath both physically and emotionally, Marin returned to school for the winter quarter and remained involved with the team despite continued medical challenges that sidelined him for the 2024 season. 'This experience has tested me in every way, but my faith and the people around me have carried me through,' Marin said. 'I share my story to inspire others, because miracles do happen.' Glenn had her own personal challenges to overcome while dealing with immense grief. Devastated from the shocking and sudden loss of her dad, she fought depression and turned to not only years of counseling but also the support from her mother, siblings, friends and everyone in her volleyball circle to find her way again. Glenn knows that being on the volleyball court is where she belongs to honor her dad — and she and her siblings now wear No. 83 on their jerseys representing the number he wore during his playing days with the Cowboys and Ohio State. 'Therapy taught me the power of opening up and accepting help,' Natalie Glenn said. 'Since my father was a public figure known by many people, I decided to share my story, so others know they don't have to struggle in silence. There's strength in seeking support and letting people in.' The CalHOPE Courage Award is presented by the College Sports Communicators, in association with The Associated Press; CalHOPE, the Department of Health Care Services' crisis counseling and support resource; and the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and Mental Well-Being. The Governor's Council sponsors this awards program for student-athletes who have overcome personal challenges to triumph in their sport. A donation will be made to support mental health at the recipients' universities. ___
