Without a doubt, this touchdown-run by number seven, Connor Ellison, was the most memorable touchdown of the season last fall for the Folsom Bulldogs.
For 11-year-old Connor, it was a dream come true.
Although Connor has the athletic ability to score a bunch of touch downs, this was his first. and it required a special show of sportsmanship by the opponents who allowed him to score. You see, Connor has a serious liver disease, Congenital Hepatic Fibrosis.
Tiffany: " Having an enlarged spleen and liver makes it dangerous for him to play any sport or activity that could harm those organs."
And just a few months ago another serious side effect became apparent. Connor woke up in the middle of the night, extremely nauseous; his stomach filled with blood due to internal bleeding. He vomited the blood and passed out.
Tiffany: " As a mom I sat there and watched my little boy slip away. He lost his color. He lost his energy."
It was a blood transfusion that prevented tragedy that night. blood donated by a stranger.
TIFFANY: " They hang that pint of blood for transfusion to bring him back and to literally see the color in his face, see him sit up, talk again and come back - it made me so grateful."
Tiffany Ellison expresses that gratitude every chance she gets. Blood and organ donation was the theme of her reign as Mrs. California, 2008. And Connor's dad, Jarred Ellison recently completed the grueling Race Across America promoting the same cause.
Meanwhile, Conner undergoes treatment for his condition every month. There's likely to be many more transfusions and doctors say he will need a liver transplant when he's older. But for now, Connor just lives his life like any other 11-year-old boy.
Tiffany: "It's a choice that we make whether or not to feel sorry for ourself or to be sad and he just doesn't"
