Burlington softball captain spearheads community support for Delavan family
By Mike Ramczyk
With the spring sports season only lasting two months, it’s ordinary for teams to play each other twice in a week or on back-to-back days.
After all, Mother Nature cancelled most area events Tuesday, and those makeup games will most likely cause a hectic, jam-packed late May for teams.
It’s extraordinary, however, when one player loses everything in a house fire, and the team she just played reaches out with money, food and overall support in her time of need.
Burlington High School softball captain Danielle Koenen, a senior pitcher, decided to do something when the Lady Demons heard Delavan-Darien’s Holly Allen and her family lost everything in a house fire last week.
It was after Friday’s game, during which Burlington knocked off host Delavan, the fourth-ranked team in the state in Division 2. The Comets returned the favor with a 6-2 victory at Burlington Monday.
The two-game series allowed members from both team, as well as fans and parents, to help each other in a time of need.
“We had just played Delavan last Friday, and we heard after the game that a player on their team had just lost her house to a fire,” Koenen said Tuesday. “We put ourselves in her shoes, and it is hard not to want to help. It was a devastating event that no one should have to go through, and it’s times like this when you need the best support system.”
“The softball community is one I have always been able to rely on, and seeing the same athletes and families these past four years has made me appreciate it. We are a community that helps each other.”
Koenen said she is close with Delavan’s Katelyn Gonzales, and she has played club ball with several Delavan players.
Tragedy strikes during softball game
Allen started in the outfield both Friday and Monday, hours after a structure fire demolished her Town of Darien home Thursday, May 5.
“Around 7 p.m. after a softball game, I got a text from someone telling me there were fire trucks and other emergency vehicles driving toward my house,” Allen said via email Tuesday. “I wasn’t home at the time, and neither was anyone else beside my dog. By the time I got home, there were firefighters coming in and out of my house and spraying my house down with water. The house wasn’t in flames when I got there but it was extremely smoking.”
“My parents got to the house about 10 minutes after I did, and we all just made sure everyone was OK. Later on they got my dog out and he was OK but not in great condition. They told us that by the time they got the fire under control about 65 percent of our house was damaged by fire and the rest was damaged by smoke … and water.”
Allen said nobody in her family was physically hurt, but the emotions have been overwhelming.
“Emotionally, we’re not doing too well,” she said. “We’re all dealing with it in different ways, and mine happens to be staying away from people that I know are going to consistently ask me about the fire. I just try to do things that get my mind off it, and we’re all just taking steps day-by-day and pushing through.”
Allen went 1-for-5 in the two games since the tragedy.
Delavan-Darien head coach Hank Johnson said Allen is having a breakthrough season for the 15-4 Comets.
“She is a great kid who hasn’t played much softball but is stepping up big for us so far this season,” Johnson said Tuesday.
Having each other’s backs
Koenen said the softball community takes care of its own, regardless of the color of the jersey.
“They have become my second family,” Koenen said of the local softball community. “Being with a group of girls in both high school ball and travel ball really brings us close. It’s as simple as just having a group to listen when you are having a bad day. We may not always be best friends off the field, but as soon as we are playing I know they have my back.”
Allen said the help from Burlington, which included big boxes of clothes, shoes and other essentials, along with donations passed in a helmet during Monday’s game, was much appreciated.
“The team pulled together in a short time frame for our Delavan softball family in need,” said Danielle’s mother Deb Koenen.
“The softball team’s assistance made me feel very happy and put me in a better position,” Allen said.
Everyone would’ve understood if Allen didn’t play in Friday or Monday’s games, but the distraction of the sport she loves took her mind off her new reality, at least for a few hours.
“I played because it helps take my mind off of everything else going on,” she said.
“We’re hoping to once again buy a house permanently, but for now we’re just moving along. I don’t think that with all of the support we have it will take too long to get back on our feet.”
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