Karns City assistant football coach TJ McFarland prays during a prayer vigil at Diehl Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 3, for the team's quarterback, Mason Martin. Martin is in critical condition at a Pittsburgh hospital after collapsing during a home game Friday night. Holly Mead/Special to the Eagle

Holly Mead

We never thought we’d see the day that Moniteau’s Warriors would wear purple and gold through the hallways.

The colors of their rival, Karns City, would probably be discouraged most days, but on Tuesday, Sept. 5, most students at the junior-senior high school donned purple or gold.

They did so for Mason Martin, the Karns City Gremlins senior quarterback who collapsed Friday on the field of Diehl Stadium during a game against the Redbank Valley Bulldogs. Mason was taken from the field by ambulance, then transported by helicopter to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he remains.

On Monday, a post made to the Facebook page of his mother, Stacy King Martin, said Mason had made some “purposeful movement” in his arms and that his lung had “completely recovered,” allowing doctors to remove a chest tube. The post called the events the “first positive step in an extremely long journey.”

The post went on to thank the community for its prayers, mentioning specifically one held outside the hospital and another held at Diehl Stadium. The community had come together in full force Sunday to offer up prayers for Mason’s recovery.

The prayers and demonstrations in support of Mason continued into Tuesday when many school districts, like Moniteau, wore Karns City’s purple and gold.

Social media posts showed people as far as Alabama offering prayers for the teen.

“Well, Mason, you’ve got nine ordinary people in Alabama, giving it all we’ve got,” a Facebook user wrote in a post that has been shared more than 14,000 times.

Here at the Eagle, we too are offering up prayers for Mason. We were devastated to learn the news from our correspondent Tyler Howe on Friday night, and we remain united in our concern for Mason and his family.

We ask all of Butler County to say a prayer for — or send some good vibes toward — Karns City’s Mason and his recovery.

Additionally, if you can, consider supporting a GoFundMe set up for the family. It can be found at www.gofundme.com/f/tf5nc-mason-martin.

— TL