Coyotes Adopt Maize Lolley through Friends of Jaclyn Foundation

Coastal Alabama Community College’s athletics program in Monroeville has added a new student to its roster, and he’s not yet out of high school. The player’s name is Maize Lolley, a 16-year-old soccer player currently enrolled at Thomasville High School who has been battling cancer for several years. And in order to show their support to Maize and his family, the Coyotes welcomed him to the program with a scholarship and a special signing ceremony.

The “adoption” event was sponsored by the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, which exists to improve the quality of life of children suffering from cancer.

“We are always looking to serve and give back to our community, and things like this put our lives into perspective,” said Coastal Alabama Community College Athletic Director Daniel Head. “Maize is going to have an open invitation to come out anytime he wants, to sit with our teams and be a part of our program.

“We want to welcome him and his family and give them an opportunity to get away from the day-to-day challenges they have to deal with.”

Players from several of Monroeville’s Coyote teams joined Head, Monroeville Mayor Charles Andrews, Campus Director Kay Lett and Alabama Community College Conference Commissioner (ACCC) Dean Myrick in celebrating Maize and his parents. The teams presented him with jerseys and an autographed basketball and softball after he signed his athletic contract to thunderous applause.

The Friends of Jaclyn Foundation connects kids like Maize with local sports teams, as so many who are diagnosed with cancer no longer have the ability to play for their respective teams. The charity’s founder, Denis Murphy, was on hand for the celebration, and said in his time with the foundation — Maize’s contract was only the most recent of at least 1,000 Murphy has facilitated — this one was unique.

“I’ve been doing this for 20 years, and it’s always been with one team and one kid,” Murphy said. “But with the ACCC, everyone from the presidents and athletic directors to the coaches have embraced this, and I want this to be the blueprint for the entire country.

“This gives me absolute chills.”

ACCC Commissioner Myrick said the opportunity to work with the Friends of Jaclyn has been a blessing for the conference as a whole, as well as its member colleges.

“We’re just trying to let them play some ball, and it’s amazing to see when they come to a game to be a bat boy, or maybe throw out the first pitch,” Myrick said. “It’s just as therapeutic for us as it is for them.”

During the signing ceremony, Maize shared his story, which included his diagnoses with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, subsequent immunotherapy, radiation and a bone marrow transplant.

“I just wanted to thank everybody involved and for all you do in making this possible,” he said. “You gave me a little fun during my cancer journey, and thank you everybody for being here.”

Maize’s mom Tonya Lolley said that over the course of a few months, her son went from an active kid enjoying city sports and having fun to someone who, when he’s not in the hospital, primarily spends time in his room. Despite having to attend school virtually during his recovery, Maize maintains a 4.0 GPA and is involved in dual enrollment with hopes of possibly becoming an engineer.

As for this rare opportunity to attend games and be a part of various Coyote teams, she has every hope that it’ll help bring him out of his shell.

“I think this will be a really, really good thing,” she said.