COLUMBUS, Ga. – The Columbus Cottonmouths are known throughout the Chattahoochee Valley and the SPHL for the impact they have on the community where they play. This coming weekend, fans will get to see the “extremes” they will go to help out someone in need.
On Sunday, May 16, fans of the ABC reality show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” will see members of the Cottonmouths’ organization and hundreds of their 
neighbors come together for a special event. The season-ending episode, shot during the final week of February, chronicles the story of the Williams family of nearby Pine Mountain Valley and the community’s efforts to help give them the dream house they need.
It was typical of the many events that the Cottonmouths’ organization participates in every year. Whether it is visiting area schools, handing out Christmas presents at local hospitals or teaching new skaters how to stand on their own, the Snakes players and staff are there to lend a hand.
“I cannot imaging the negative affect to the community if the Cottonmouths team were to leave,” team owner Wanda Amos said.
The spirit of giving that Amos and her husband Shelby have used as one of the cornerstones of the SPHL Cottonmouths is an element that runs through every member of the team. Whether it be office staff, hockey operations staff or players, when it comes to the fans and the community, the question is always the same: “what can we do to help?”.
“We believe we have some of the best players in the league both on and off the ice,” Cottonmouths’ Director of Marketing and Promotions Jason Bray said. “The Cottonmouths organization wants to help out in the community in any way it can and we are fortunate enough to have the available resources to do some amazing things.”
When Extreme Makeover’s producers sent out word that the Columbus area was selected to come in rebuild a deserving family’s home, Bray was one of the first to offer the assistance of his organization to the very worthwhile cause. As it turned out, the family chosen was one that Bray and the Cottonmouths were quite familiar with, turning the project into something very personal.
Bray’s ties with the Williams family go back to attending elementary school with Jennifer and high school with her husband Jeremy. A couple of years ago, Bray and Jennifer Williams ran into each other. It was at that time that Bray found out that the Williams had two children, eight-year ole Josie and six-year old Jacob. He also learned that the family was struggling with not one but two health issues.
At the time of his birth, Jacob was diagnosed with spina bifida, which in Latin means “split spine”. In real terms, it is a developmental birth defect that despite numerous surgeries, has left the high-spirited youngster confined to a wheel chair. Then, just prior to the chance reunion, it was learned that Jeremy, who is the Athletic Director and football coach at Greenville High School, was starting to suffer the effects of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or as it is more commonly known “Lou Gehrig’s disease” after the New York Yankee great whose career and life were cut short by it). ALS is a neurodegenerative disease that affects the nervous system and its communication with the brain, rendering the body immobile while the brain is completely active.
As Jennifer and Jason talked, she told him about how Jacob wanted to play sports like his dad but in order to do that he would need a wheelchair that was specially modified for sporting activity. Unfortunately, however, insurance would not cover the cost for such a chair. 
Bray immediately went into “I want to help” mode. He sat down with Columbus General Manager and Head Coach Jerome Bechard – who is a dad himself – to see if there was anything the team could do. Bechard agreed that it was a very noble cause, especially after having lunch with the family and meeting Jacob.
“Jacob is an exceptional child who has never once complained about his situation,” Bechard said.
At the start of the 2008-2009 season, the Cottonmouths had scheduled a pre-season game and designated the United Way as the beneficiary of money raised by the game. They modified it by keeping $2,000 of the proceeds from the game to pay for the chair. A company in Atlanta was contacted and contracted to produce the chair, which included a Cottonmouths’ logo. Bray himself drove to a truck stop near Atlanta to meet the truck, pick up the chair and bring it back to Columbus. The team then invited the family to a regular season game for a private locker room meeting to present Jacob with his chair. Bray said he could see that the players got as much out of the meeting as Jacob and his family did.
Fast forward to February, 2010 when Ty Pennington and the crew arrived in Pine Mountain Valley. Knowing that the team had three games scheduled that week, it was decided that the Cottonmouths would work the 7 p.m. to midnight shift on Wednesday, February 24th. Following a game on Tuesday in Pensacola, the team bus drove all night, getting back to Columbus at 5 a.m. They then practiced, got a little rest and headed over to the home location, not once thinking about what they could have been doing on a night off.
Dressed in their street clothes and Extreme Makeover volunteer t-shirts, the Cottonmouths blended in with the other volunteers on the shift. There were plenty of tasks to be performed such as moving cabinets, taking out trash, pulling nails out of boards, distributing wood flooring and more. Some even helped with stacking and grouting for a rock wall inside the house. A few of the older ladies on the shift were quite grateful to have help from a group of big, strong boys, one even noting that “the Cottonmouths were such a blessing to those of us working on the house as well as the family.”
Afterwards, Bechard said that the whole experience left him with a sense of awe and respect for the family and the volunteers who gave of themselves to help others.
“It was one of the most amazing things I have ever been a part of,” he said. “You think things in your life are bad until you meet a family like the Williams family.”
Bray said that for the players, working on the Extreme Makeover project has had a much deeper impact than any win on the ice.
“Their playing days in Columbus will always be remembered but the opportunity to help the Williams family in such a profound way will never be forgotten,” he said.
The Cottonmouths will not be the only celebrities that viewers will see during the program. NFL player Michael Oher and the Tuohy family, whose story was told in the Academy Award-winning movie “The Blind Side” also helped out, as did former NFL coach-turned ESPN analyst Herman Edwards. Disney actress/recording artist Demi Lovato also spends time with the Williams family and sings a solo version of “Make A Wave”, a song she co-recorded with Joe Jonas of the Jonas Brothers.
“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” can be seen on ABC Sunday night at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. For more information, go to www.abc.com .
With the help of the Extreme Makeover crew and Palm Harbor Homes, a music video was put together as a preview of the program. For every viewing, sponsors will donate $.01 to the ALS Association for research. Every little bit helps. Please take time to click the following link and watch: http://www.palmharbor.com/extremephn/video/
Contact the author at cindy.williamson@prohockeynews.com
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