Carson’s Heart Still Aching
LB Wilson senior overcomes family adversity to qualify for state meet
in
three events - Kirby Lee
De Ana Carson will hear her mother Pamela Smith’s laughter and
see
her smile when the Long Beach Wilson High senior runs the third leg
of the Bruins’ state-leading 400-meter relay in the State
Championships at Cerritos College on June 2-3.
In the 100-meter hurdles, Carson will hear her mother cheering and
shouting her name as she crosses the finish line. In the long jump,
Carson will be asking her mother for strength as she sails through the
air in the long jump in the state meet qualifying competition.
This weekend, however, there will be an empty spot in the stands above
the power-blue oval where Smith followed De Ana’s career from its
inception as a national youth age group standout into one of state’s
top multi-event high school athletes.
Smith died at age 41 in November 2004 from a viral infection during a
tumultuous 13-month period in which Carson dealt with the death of
three family members.
In January of 2004, her grandmother Lillie Belcher died after a
10-year battle with breast cancer at age 65. That was followed by her
mother’s death in November and the passing of her father Donald
Carson at age 48 of liver disease.
The death of her mother was particularly difficult for Carson. She
raised De Ana as a single parent and traveled throughout the country.
Watch her daughter compete was the highlight of Smith’s life.
Carson said she was pampered by her mother, who worked long hours as
an Amtrak National Passenger Services employee to make sure she had
the newest and latest track spikes. Carson still gets teary-eyed
reminiscing about the home-cooked meals that her mother prepared for
her every night.
“It was just me and her,” Carson said. “She got me out of messes
and
did everything for me even though we didn’t have a lot of money. I
keep thinking that one day she will pop up again at a meet. There was
always somebody there so it feels a little strange when nobody is
watching me.’’
Carson missed more than a month of school after her mother’s death.
Her Wilson teammates attended the funeral but Carson has said very
little to them to this day regarding the incident.
“It was devastating,” Carson said. “I felt alone. I couldn’t
believe
that it happened and she was gone.’’
Junior Ebony Collins, one of Carson’s closest friends on the track
team, gave De Ana a small gold pendant with a hologram of Smith’s
picture and the words `Always in My Memories’’ underneath as a
token
of sympathy.
“Nobody really says anything to her and she doesn’t say anything,”
Collins said. “I’m here if she wants somebody to talk to or doesn’t.
I
just wanted to get her something for the holidays.’’
The pendant is one of Carson’s most cherished memories of her mother
and hangs on the wall above her bed. On her dresser are framed
pictures of her mother as well as photo of herself and Collins
running side by side in the 100-meter hurdles in the 2005 Southern
Section Division I finals.
Carson carries her mother’s favorite blanket, a patchwork quilt, to
every meet to stretch before her events. She often wears her mother’s
jewelry in her memory. A good portion of the jewelry including her
mother’s favorite gold necklace, though, were lost when Carson’s
purse
was stolen during a recruiting trip to UNLV last fall.
Carson’s aunt, Kenya Smith, has been appointed as Carson’s legal
guardian. Carson moved from Long Beach to South Central Los Angeles
where she often takes a 45-minute train ride home from school.
Transferring to a closer school or giving up track never crossed her
mind.
Her mother’s death had an adverse affect on Carson’s track
performances last season. She failed to approach the marks of her
sophomore year when she finished third in the 100 hurdles and long
jump in the 2005 state meet.
“It was like she wasn’t all there,” Wilson coach Terry Kennedy
said.
“
It seemed like she was somewhere in outer space.’’
Carson has regained her form mentally and physically this spring. In
the Southern Section Division I finals, Carson won the long jump and
finished second to Collins in the 100 and 100 hurdles. She also ran
on the Bruins’ victorious 400 relay to help Wilson win its second
consecutive team title.
In the fall, Carson is headed to Baylor on a track scholarship.
Carson also considered UCLA and UNLV but opted to attend school at
Baylor in Texas to put herself in a new environment.
“I just wanted to get away and leave California and start somewhere
new where nobody knows me,” Carson said. “Everything happens for
a
reason and I am just trying to pull everything together.’’
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