Hines Continues To Battle COVID-19

A Cordell native who has established a winning tradition as a Ft. Cobb basketball coach is battling for his life in an Oklahoma City hospital after contracting COVID-19 in July.

A fundraiser is planned to help Scott Hines and his family with expenses being incurred.

Scott, who is a Cordell High School graduate, remains in critical condition at Baptist Integris Hospital in Oklahoma City, his wife Becky said earlier this week.

He got sick on July 9 and he went to the Grady Memorial Hospital in Chickasha on July 17, she said.

“He couldn’t have visitors then and I didn’t get to see him until Aug. 8 except briefly when they were loading him into the ambulance to transfer him to the old Deaconess Hospital in Oklahoma City July 24, which is Integris’ COVID hospital,” Becky explained.

“On July 31, he came to Integris Baptist Hospital and he’s been here ever since. It has definitely been quite a battle. Lots of ups and downs,” she added.

It was on Aug. 8 hospital officials moved Scott to a non-COVID unit. “That’s when I got to see him. He has been sedated most of the time. He can’t talk because of the trach they put in. He can shake his head and communicate that way and he responds to me, the doctors and nurses,” Becky said.

In an interview on Monday of this week, she shared, “Today, he’s looking a little better. Still in critical condition, he’s on a ventilator and an ECMO machine.

“That takes blood from his body and puts oxygenated blood back into his body. It kind of acts like an iron lung,” she explained.

Scott has never been fully awake since July 24 when they put him on the ventilator, his wife noted.

In hopes of helping to defray some of the expenses of the long hospital stay and treatment, a family friend is planning a fundraiser.

“It’s an ongoing response from family, friends, community, and even more far reaching than that,” Becky added.

Mary Jane Repp and her husband Eddie are spearheading a golf fundraiser. Mary Jane said it’s scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 12, at the Ft. Cobb State Park Golf Course.

“There’s a morning flight and afternoon flight and there are two teams teeing off each hole in the morning and on most of the holes in the afternoon,” she said.

The morning flight tees off starting at 9 a.m. and the afternoon flight tees off at 3 p.m. “There are 38 teams teeing off in the morning and 24 in the afternoon,” Mary Jane said. It’s a four-man scramble format and the entry fee is $300 per team to enter, she said.

“We’re plumb full. We don’t have room for anymore.” However, Mary Jane stated if anyone is interested in getting in the tournament, they can give her a call at 405-668-0182 in case there are some last-minute cancellations.

Mary Jane pointed out, “There has been super support in all aspects to helping with the tournament. There have been a lot of businesses who are also sponsoring the tournament and volunteers who have helped. Some are bringing food and helping to serve it,” she explained.

She said, “We are going to serve food to the players.”

The local support has been tremendous she indicated.

“I want to thank everyone who has helped us. The Hines family has been a part of this community for a long, long time. We are looking forward to a good tournament,” She said.

Becky pointed to her husband’s success as a boys basketball coach since he took over the job in the 1997-1998 school year.

“His teams have won seven state championships and have been state runner-up twice,” she reflected.

“He’s had some great kids who were great players,” she continued.

A college friend who says he ran around with Scott during their four years at the University of Central Oklahoma recalls the last time he was in Cordell. Jeff Edmonson is the head coach of the boys basketball team at Dale High School in Pottawatomie County near Shawnee.

“Scott and I spent the night at his parents’ home the last time I was in Cordell,” he remembers.

“Scott was a really good basketball player. We played Intramural basketball at UCO and ran around together,” Jeff recalls.

“He’s a really good coach and we were really good friends in college,” Jeff continued.

“We usually catch up with each other around state tournament time,” Jeff added, noting they play in different classes so he’s never coached against him. “But we have scrimmaged against each other some,” he said.

“I hope Scott keeps getting better,” he said.

Though neither Jeff nor Scott played on the UCO basketball team, Jeff said they had some classes together, too, because they were pursuing the same courses of study to become coaches.