When Eli Bailey was looking through his yearbook recently from Bridgeport Middle School, he noticed all the pictures in it of the school’s cross country program. And since Eli liked to run, it more than caught his attention.

 

It made him decide that he should go out for cross county this year at BMS. Ironically, the fact that he liked to run wasn’t the biggest motivating factor.

 

“I saw those photos for the last couple of years and that was one of the reasons I decided I should go out. The big reason is that I want my picture to be in the yearbook with the team,” said Bailey.

 

Thus began the latest leg in the journey for the person who is still my favorite Bridgeport athlete. I’ve written about Eli before and how he battled back from a serious condition to be one of many standouts in the Challenger League Division of Little League Baseball here in Bridgeport.

 

That’s where I got to meet Eli and his mother – Beth Dawkins Fox. And that’s when I realized very quickly that I may never admire an athlete or have one make me smile with any more force than Eli Bailey.

 

For those that don’t know, Eli Bailey faces some disabilities as a result of three brain surgeries that finally resulted in the complete removal of the left portion of his brain. Even before he was born, Eli was seizing while in utero and after he was delivered. In fact, he was seizing every three hours after he was delivered. The problems led to a decision three months after birth that entire left side of Eli’s brain would need to be disconnected.

 

The surgery to do that – and the accompanying medicine along with it – didn’t work. The seizures continued, and they continued for the next three years before the surgery was done to remove the left side of his brain. It would be an eight-our procedure that resulted in Eli’s mother being told that the seizures would never happen again.

 

Since that time, Eli has had some catching up to do and he’s doing his best to meet that challenge. Along with his ever-present smile, Eli Bailey wasn’t about to sit on the sidelines so he got involved with Challenger, which is set up for children with physical and mental needs so that they can enjoy the Little League baseball experience.

 

While he’s still involved there, he’s got a new sport on his docket – cross country. His mother is impressed.

 

“I look out and see him running and I can’t help remembering back to that boy that couldn’t walk up or down the steps on his own when he was eight years old and now he’s out there running,” said Fox. “Yes, it’s a miracle in my eyes.”

 

It’s a miracle that Eli’s mom admits she was a bit hesitant to let evolve. The hesitation had nothing to do with a lack of love for her child, but rather concerns that any parent with a child with special needs may face.

 

“He loves to go to City Park and walk the trails, but this one Sunday this August he was on the computer and he told me that there were cross country tryouts tomorrow and he said ‘mom, I want to do it.’ I told him that he hadn’t practiced and I had a fear he might not make the team, but he just pleaded to do it so I allowed him,” said Fox. “We got his sports physical and went to the tryouts and he just fell in love with everything. I can’t tell you how important this whole process has been for not just Eli, but for me as well.”

 

While Beth and Eli fell in love with the sport, the sport and all involved have fallen in love with Eli. The same contagious smile that was there before and after the brain surgeries and at the Challenger League games accompanied him to the cross country practices and meets.

 

Here’s the thing: The eighth grader wearing the Braves’ colors isn’t just the most popular athlete on the Bridgeport roster. He’s the most popular runner at every meet the Braves have participated at this year. And the popularity hasn’t let up.

 

“I went to a practice the other day and was there 10 minutes early and they were doing relay races between sixth, seventh and eighth grades. I’m a bit of a worrier and I was worried about Eli going last and losing the relay and that the kids would be mad at him,” said Fox. “It didn’t happen.”

 

No, something else happened. The really good news is that what happened is the norm as opposed to the exception.

 

“The kid gave (the baton) to Eli and he ran and then every kid there started chanting his name. They didn’t care who won or lost. They all just wanted him to do his best,” said Fox. “The same thing happens at the meets.

 

“Kids from Bridgeport, parents from Bridgeport, students and parents from other schools cheer him on and they even race beside him to encourage him,” Fox continued. “At a recent meet, the kids from Suncrest (in Morgantown) were cheering him on and the parents were too. I wish I could personally thank everyone to let them know how special that is and it happens at every meet with every school.”

 

Beth Fox said some may be cheering because they notice Eli has disabilities. Yet, she knows a lot of it is because of his perseverance.

 

“He finishes every meet. He doesn’t stop running. I saw him recently come out of the woods covered with dirt from head to toe and his knee scrapped up so he must have fallen, but he kept running and was smiling at the end,” said Fox. “I guess Eli’s been through so much that overcoming that isn’t really too much for him.”

 

There is one problem, according to mom. Eli notices the attention.

 

“Sometimes he starts waving when people yell his name,” said Fox. “I have to remind him he’s there to run.”

 

Yet his reason to wave is one that I believe gives him a pass.

 

“I do that because people are nice to me and it makes it fun,” said Eli.

 

The coaches,  Amanda Bailey and Jack Merinar, said Fox not only welcomed Eli, but have provided mom with a comfort level that has made the experience that much more enjoyable.

 

“Amanda texts me during a race because she knows I’m nervous if there’s a steep hill that I can’t see that he has to go over,” said Fox. “She’ll text me to let me know he’s okay. They’ve just been so great to Eli and it’s really benefiting him beyond cross country too.

 

“His confidence level has gone up like you wouldn’t believe,” she continued. “The interaction with the other kids is phenomenal and special.”

 

It may also be spilling over into the classroom. Eli said he’s making straight A’s, but needs to bring his B in science up. He also said he loves Social Studies and Mr. Edwards’ class.

 

“I really like school,” said Eli, who said he’s already thinking about going out for the high school team next year.

 

Of course, Beth Dawkins Fox now really likes cross country. In particular, she likes not only what it’s done for her son, but what she’s realized.

 

“This experience has reaffirmed my faith in kids and people in general,” she said. “You don’t know what to expect with how your child will be accepted when they have special needs, but this is beyond the best case scenario. It lets me know there’s still something right in our world. To see those kids love him is truly the greatest experience of my life.”

 

A big part of what is right with the world is kids like Eli Bailey. That, of course, and his huge smile – it’s one of many reasons everyone likes him and why he’s still my favorite Bridgeport athlete ever. If you get a chance to watch him, Eli might just become your favorite athlete as well.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo shows Eil Bailey at the recent Indian Run Invitational at Charles Pointe (photo by Ben Queen), while Bailey is watched by coaches Amanda Bailey and Jack Merinar in the second photo. Eli runs in front of a throng of spectators in the third photo, while Coach Merinar makes sure Eli gets across a creek safely in one recent meet.