More than just a fan

An inspiration to the Blue Bombers, David Leitch credits the football team with giving him something to live for

July 3, 2013 | Young Voices
Julia Sisler |

On any given summer day, you will find 22-year-old David Leitch at Investors Group Field receiving passes from the Winnipeg Blue Bomber quarterbacks, joking around with coaches or even giving interviews to local media. Leitch’s name does not appear on any game-day roster or the list of the club’s coaching staff, but he does have a special place in the heart of the Canadian Football League organization.

Leitch was born with spina bifida. It means that his spinal cord did not form properly in the womb. It also means he is bound to a wheelchair for his whole life.

From Day One, it seemed like the odds were against him. Not only did he have to fight for his life after receiving endless surgeries starting right after birth, he says he also faced the emotional battles of not knowing who is father was and a mother who wrote him off as “useless” because of his disorder, adding that he was raised in trying circumstances by his grandmother, who was given custody of him.

“I was made to feel like it was my fault for being in a chair,” Leitch says.

He recalls school as a happy place to be in comparison to his home life. He can only remember one negative experience where he was told by a stranger, “People like you shouldn’t go to school.”

He doesn’t put too much energy in worrying about society’s perception of him, though. “People are pretty good to me,” he says. “You get the odd guy who might have something negative to say, but generally people are nice.”

It was one afternoon of boredom and curiosity in 2009 that created a huge change in his life. He heard about an open practice for the Bombers and decided to check it out. After one conversation with the team’s late coach, Richard Harris, Leitch knew he had found safety and an escape at the stadium.

From that day his relationship with the whole Bomber community began to grow. He would ride the bus from his home in North Kildonan to the stadium every time that there was a practice or game. It was a place where he found love, acceptance and growth.

He notes relationships with three men in particular. Team chaplain Lorne Korol, current Saskatchewan Roughriders wide receiver Aaron Hargreaves and former quarterback Alex Brink.

Hargreaves describes how Leitch served as a constant sideline reminder of what life is really about. “During my time in Winnipeg, having David show up to practice, day in and day out, shows true character and dedication on his part,” he says.

Leitch showed the team how to truly be a fighter and a real competitor, on and off the field, according to Hargreaves. “Although I no longer play in Winnipeg, David still serves as a source of inspiration for me. His constant determination and hard work in life, serves as a great example of how to be not only a better football player, but a better person,” he says.

The impact that Leitch has on the Blue Bombers became especially evident in the spring of 2012, when he was diagnosed with pneumonia during training camp and, according to doctors, was probably not going to survive. During this time, the Bombers truly stepped up for him.

Bomber staff members, coaches and players were at his bedside during his three-week hospital stay. The hospital became a revolving door of Bomber family members coming in to check on him and shed tears at the thought of losing one of their own.

But he pulled through and made a full recovery.

While being an inspiration to the Bombers, he credits them with giving him something to live for: a place and a purpose.

Although you will never find the name “David Leitch” on any professional football roster, his position on the Blue Bombers is just as important as any first-string quarterback. l

The Voice of the Voiceless articles were written for Canadian Mennonite University’s Journalism: Practices and Principles course during the Winter 2013 semester. Teacher Carl DeGurse is vice-chair of Canadian Mennonite’s board of directors and assistant city editor of the Winnipeg Free Press.

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