IRVINE, Calif.- The Concordia University Irvine track and field teams will be hosting their first meets of the season Friday, March 26th and Saturday, March 27th on the new track. Traditionally these two events are combined into one day and called Team For Titus and Ely. This year it was decided to make the meet into two separate days. Friday the men's squad will be competing in Team For Titus and Saturday the women will race in Team for Ely.  Both meets are scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. at the Eagles Field. 
 
These meets are very special to the Concordia track and field programs because of what they represent. The Team For Titus and Ely Meet was created to honor the Bowman family. Danny Bowman was the head coach of the CUI track and field teams for a little over four years and coached alongside several coaches who are still on the coaching staff to this day including now head coach Keegan Bloomfield, director of operations/assistant coach Joslyn Drew, and assistant coach DeAndra'e Woods. 
 
"The Team For Titus and Ely track and field meets are an amazing opportunity to honor a loving family that has impacted this program greatly," shared Woods. "The Bowman family will always be a light that shines here at CUI, in our program as well as in my life. This meet gives us an opportunity to raise awareness of battens disease as well as to love and honor Titus' life and support Ely, Danny and Bekah. May God continue to bless this family and all the people their story touches."
 
The following is an opening letter by Bekah Bowman, Bowman's wife, explaining what the Team For Titus and Team For Ely meets stand for:
 
Hello Athletes!
 
First, let me say welcome to the fifth annual Team For Titus and Ely Meet. I am grateful you are here and wish you all the best in your events. I know this has been a difficult year and am so glad for this opportunity for you to compete this weekend.  
 
The Team For Titus and Ely Meet began in 2016 in support of our family as our boys were newly diagnosed with a rare, fatal, genetic disease called Batten. My husband, Danny Bowman, was the head coach for Concordia University Irvine at the time, and we gathered with Westmont for a friendly day of competition and support. The next year it grew exponentially and was inspiring to see the athletes out there competing with the spirit of joy and strength that our boys Titus and Ely demonstrated through their battle with Batten. 
 
Titus, our oldest, was a dinosaur-stomping, train-loving, joy-filled boy. He went a million miles a minute and my husband said he had the "quick twitch" and would someday make a great sprinter. He proved to be fast when he started crawling, and then walking turned right into running. We didn't know he had a disease inside him. But it reared its ugly head right after Titus turned three in the form of seizures. From there, Titus began to lose his ability to walk (run and dinosaur stomp), speak, see, and eat by mouth. After over a year of searching for answers, we found out about Batten Disease. He became wheelchair bound and at our first Team For Titus and Ely meet, Titus arrived in his yellow and black wheelchair to cheer the athletes on. He passed away just six months later at the age of six and is adventuring in Heaven, we have no doubt. But we miss him deeply. 
 
Ely, our youngest, was only two when Titus was diagnosed with Batten Disease. When we found out it was genetic, we knew we needed to get Ely tested. Although Ely showed no symptoms at all, we found out he too had the disease. Ten days after Titus passed away, Ely was invited into a clinical trial and started receiving enzyme replacement therapy every 14 days directly into his brain. He continues to get this life-long treatment and is four and a half years into it. Ely is joy-filled like his brother, so very resilient, and loves to make people laugh. He's been able to be at the 2016, 2017, and 2018 Team For Titus and Ely Meets and loved every minute of them.
 
Ely is doing incredibly well as we were able to start this brand new treatment for him before major symptoms began. While it's not a cure, it has slowed down the progression of the disease. He has gone completely blind, is very speech delayed and has overall developmental delays, but he still runs, walks and climbs on his own. He is an independent spirit and full of joy! He will be eight this summer. We wish he could be here to cheer you all on in person, but he doesn't travel well. You can always catch his adventures on social media on Facebook @TeamforTitusEly or on my instagram @bekahsbowman. You can also learn more about Batten Disease at www.bdsra.org. 
 
Titus and Ely have always demonstrated resilience, perseverance, and strength. We know these are highly valued in the athletic world. As you compete today, remember that in our weak and broken places, we can actually find our strength. In our pain and grief, there is joy to be discovered. Each day gives us an opportunity to tune in and fully participate. Go out there and give it your all. In all the pain and disappointment, strength and celebration, your ability to compete today is a gift. 
 
Lastly, thank you to Keegan Bloomfield, head coach of Concordia University Irvine, and the entire staff and team for their continued support for our family and dedication to raising awareness for this disease.
 
Cheering you all on today,
Bekah Bowman (Titus and Ely's mom)
 
The Eagles track and field programs have a rich history and a strong sense of community and family. 
 
"It's exciting for us to host the Team For Titus and Team For Ely Invitationals this year," exclaimed Bloomfield. "This meet provides the obvious opportunity to compete and represent Concordia. It also provides our team and the teams in attendance the chance to celebrate two young boys who won't get the chance to race collegiately. Remembering that life is a gift from God and we can rejoice in him always is something that Titus and Ely have given us."  
 
There are actually still a few players apart of the current track and field rosters who played under Danny Bowman. One of these players is Bailey Wade. Wade is a graduate student from the women's track and field team. During the time Bowman coached at Concordia, Wade developed a close relationship with his family. Wade mentioned that she attended Titus' service, babysat Ely, and went to church with their family.
 
Wade also commented on how the Team For Titus & Ely Meet has grown and developed over time. 

"It's crazy how the first meet was way smaller, and that now it's actually a bigger meet," reflected Wade. "It's crazy to see the turn of it and even though Bowman (Danny Bowman) and Bekah have moved states we are still able to honor them because of what they've gone through and [for] their strength. Bekah actually has a book and she is an amazing woman." 
 
If you are interested in checking out Bekah Bowman's book it is called, Can't Steal My Joy: The Journey to a Different Kind of Brave.

Wade feels strongly about what the Team For Titus and Team For Ely meets stand for. She explained, "This [event] means a lot to me because I've known them, always been passionate for them, and keep updated with them. It'll be emotional, it's always emotional seeing them."
 
"Titus passing saved his brother's life," continued Wade. "There is no cure, but he still saved his brother's life (by identifying the illness and starting treatments early on). You can tell people (about what happened) but it's way different when you know them and have seen them. It's different because we lived through it and followed along with them."
 
"I've dealt with a lot of stuff, but I always say when I'm in a lot of pain that if Ely pushes himself through all the difficulties and so does Bekah and Bowman, so can I," concluded Wade. "They keep going and find the light."

Another current player who was brought onto the Eagles track and field program by Danny Bowman is Aaron Mason. Mason is a graduate student on the men's team. 

"To me the meet this weekend is about running for something bigger than myself," responded Mason. "It's about honoring a man (Danny Bowman) who allowed me to have the opportunity five years ago to run track at the college level. Not only did I get the opportunity but he believed in me and that's something that I will always be grateful for."

Mason also mentioned that, "To the program this meet is about letting the Bowman family know that even though they are far away and many of us who knew them personally have gone on to other endeavors, they are and will always be part of the CUI track and field family and Concordia family as a whole."

A closing note from Bloomfield is, "Danny and Bekah have been amazing lights for Christ in my life and our campus community. We're excited to welcome them back home to CUI."

To view the full women's track and field schedule CLICK HERE.
To view the full men's track and field schedule CLICK HERE.