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2017 Prospects

Nicholas Ah Sam Has A Home To Honor Mom

Nicholas Ah Sam Has A Home To Honor Mom

Editors Note- Nicolas does not spell his name with an “H” we have corrected all but the title so as not to break the story link as it is being widely shared!

When our friend Margie Cheencha Ah Sam asked us to look in on her Son in 2015 we did.  Nicholas Ah Sam was a Junior and having a break out year as the best athlete on the Springfield Millers football team.  Part of my extended family, Margie was the ultimate Mom and super fan and she drove her kids into sports through her passion and hope for a better future for them all.

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Nicholas Ah Sam with his Mother Margie in the Fall of 2016.

She was one of the loudest and most boisterous and even outrageous Mom’s ever! Margie’s passion was not to be questioned and her love unconditional. The Samoan native raised her family and many others who came into her world and she did it without much money or help or resources.  But she was so passionate and strong and her love drove that family forward; heading up and forward to a better place.

Her cheers and chants for Nicolas and all her kids were legendary. So too her famous posts on Facebook!

Margie Ah Sam

Boy she was Fun.  Really a great example of God’s work in human form.

That is why it was so hard to get the news that she passed away suddenly in October of 2017 right in the middle of the football season.  Right after this post was made.  Nick was just finally getting some love and moving ahead and Margie who was the wind behind his wings (Hurricane or “Afa” truly)  was now gone.

No way he could continue, but he did.  The family did…together.

The Sprigfield (Ore) community turned out and turned up by the hundreds at a memorial service and rallied around Nicolas and his 5 siblings.  It was beautiful and poetic and cruel and kind and all things in between.  The woman who loved them all so much was gone.  Nick, a first team all State football and basketball player, was needed back on the fields and as hard as it was he pressed on.  The Division 1 Safety who had been pressed into service as a QB put his heart on the line and attacked the field for the Millers.

You can Donate to a Fund set up by the Springfield Community to help these 5 amazing kids by clicking the picture below. NWPR has helped just today and hope you can too.

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Nicolas took Margie with him game after game and laid down performance after performance on his way to being named 1st Team All State.  The Miller’s struggled during the season but this amazing young man lead a scrappy and tough group of kids every Friday racking up huge numbers.  His ultimate effort came in the final game of the season against superbly tough Thurston.

In that game Nick threw for 175 yards and a TD and took off running for 282 yards and 4 more TD’s.  In the end he had posted 437 yards and had nothing left to give.  The Millers came up short 39-36.

Thurston’s Head Coach Justin Starck offered this at games end.

“We expected him to do that,” Starck said. “The only way we knew that we could stop it is to commit all 11 guys on our defense to him. We did as much as we could and still couldn’t contain him.”

Watch Nick get it done in that game right here.

“I kept thinking she would be in the endzone when I got there waiting for me,”said Nicolas as we talked about that night.

At seasons end Nick had run for 1400 yards and 20 Td’s and thrown for 900 yards and another 4 all from his QB spot; not bad for a Safety.

With the season over and basketball on deck Nicolas had little time to think about recruiting.  He is one of the State’s best basketball players and took off in game 1 and has not looked back averaging 20 points per game.

With Margie watching over he and his siblings life went on.  The community has gathered around them too.  All season many wondered who would offer Nick and when it would happen because his ability was more then obvious.  In December his first and main offer came from Coach Bruce Barnum and the PSU Vikings.

It turns out Coach Barnum had been monitoring the situation and wanted to reach out and make the Viking family part of the Ah Sam family.

Yesterday Nicolas pledged his future to the Viks.  No doubt when he gets to the park blocks in Portland next Summer Margie will be with him shouting “Beast Mode” and a number of other patented phrases!  She was one for the ages and her children carry her legacy forward in all they do.

Margie – Matou te alofa ia te oe.

Forever.

Here is a 1 to 1 conversation we had with Nicolas- we will be rooting for him and the Viks next season!


Nick Ah Sam1

 

Nicolas big congrats on the offer from PSU! When did you get the offer and how was it made to you?

Thank you so much dirk. And they offered at my basketball tournament in Wilsonville the 17th of December.  Coach Leunen and Thienes and Coach Barnum!

Did you ever talk to  your Mom about PSU or who might offer you and where you’d go?
Yeah she loved PSU!!

Man I just wish I could hold her, we would just cry tears of joy knowing we have finally done it and made it to the next level and achieved our goal.. if she were here I’d honestly just wanna be at home with her watching her favorite show (48 hours) while she rubbed my head, and shoulders.. and have some Oreos and milk like we always used to lol ..

 Yeah she sure did.  She raised my siblings and I to be able to get through anything though.

 Financially, spiritually, emotionally, culturally etc. was all my Mom.  She raised my 5 siblings and 2 of her nieces and would take care of plenty of other nieces and nephews siblings and cousins for months at a time although she never had it as well financially as any of them .
So selfless.. such a beautiful woman all around.

The memorial service was huge right ?

Yeah.. oh my gosh it was so humbling for my siblings and I. Probably a few hundred packed one full side of the bleachers and they had to pull up the up top bleachers and there were lots of people on the ground and on the sides of the gym and what not.   It was amazing.

Last thing is when your mom died you only stayed out a few days and played right away and you had the last game that was just unreal.  Did you feel as if you were on another level that night ? What must have been going through your mind or were you even thinking anything?

Man I was just thinking in my head every time I ran the ball that my mom was in the end zone and that was my only way to get to her .. was to get in that end zone.

Congrats Nicolas.  This is great that you can be close to home.

Absolutely.. and thank you I’m glad I was given this opportunity which luckily isn’t too far away from home

I am the Founder of the Northwest Prep Report. For 17 years I have led the way to the best of my ability to promote the best talent from the Pacific NW free of charge. It is my pleasure to continue to serve High School athletes from all over the Pacific NW and beyond. Formerly with Rivals.com my sites have now crossed over 8,000 stories, 7 MILLION Video Views, and 15,000 regular followers. Together with the best football people in the USA we pursue excellence for our NW athletes.

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