By Justin Damasiewicz
Most kids like to play with toys and video games. Given the choice, most kids would pick a vacation in Disneyland. Braden Dohrmann is not “most kids.” Braden, who turns twelve on June 11, is a dedicated multi-sport athlete, and perhaps the biggest sports fan you could ever meet.
Braden resides in Montesano with his parents, Cy and Kim, and his younger sisters, Landree and Audree. He plays football, baseball and basketball. His favorite sport to play is whichever one is in season. Braden is a gifted athlete, but what stands out about him the most is his love for sports, which began at a very young age. In fact, according to him, it started “probably right when I was born.”
“When I was about three and we lived in Portland, my babysitter played football for Portland State,” Braden recalled. “We went to pretty much all of their home games. That was really fun. I remember tiny bits of them.”
“There was an away game on the radio,” Kim added. “The only radio we had that worked was in our bedroom. He sat at the end of our bed and listened to the entire game as if he was watching it on television. It was crazy.”
While most three-year-old boys would be playing with dinosaurs and super hero action figures, Braden was listening to college football games on the radio. It was not out of the ordinary for him. It is just who he is.
“We got (Braden and Landree) together and said, ‘We’re going to go on vacation. Where’s the one place you really, really want to go?’” Cy said. “(Braden’s) answer, ‘Green Bay.’ He wanted to go to Green Bay to watch the Packers as a three-year-old.”
A trip to Green Bay’s historic Lambeau Field may not be a surprising vacation choice for a dedicated, full-grown sports fan, but it was a strange one for a youngster. However, Braden’s request exemplified his personality. Even as a preschooler, it was all about sports.
“He’s never had toys. We tried,” Kim said with a chuckle. “I made him have some typical toys under his bed for when kids came over to play. Even when he was little, he never wanted toys.”
Instead, Braden would play whiffle ball outside, or simulate games on the mini basketball hoop in his room. He also enjoys setting up his football trading cards on his Seahawks themed football field carpet and playing through games. Cy added that Braden is very good at using his imagination.
This fall, Braden will enter seventh grade. He is very excited about the change, primarily because he will have physical education class every day in junior high, instead of just once each week in elementary school. However, he also added that he is excited about the opportunity to join the school’s track team, a program not offered in grade school.
Sports are a family affair for the Dohrmann’s, and spring can be pretty hectic since all three kids are playing either baseball or softball. Braden is not the only stand-out athlete in his family, either. Landree was recently named to the ten-year-old softball all-star team.
“We have about 103 games this spring between all three kids,” Cy noted. “Three kids, four teams. We’ll probably end up closer to 110 or 115 with all stars. We’ll be done the first or second week of July.”
“I’ll be done by the end of August, because I’m going to be in Williamsport for the Little League World Series,” Braden added with a confident smile.
Braden also follows college and professional sports very closely. He watches SportsCenter on ESPN regularly to stay up to date on the current events of the sports world. He also subscribes to Sports Illustrated and Sports Illustrated for Kids magazines.
Braden has had the opportunity to travel to many different sports venues all over the country to see various teams play. His favorite sporting events to attend are Seahawks football games. The Dohrmann’s have season tickets to Seahawks games, so Braden has been CenturyLink Field to watch his favorite football team many times.
“Seahawks games are my favorite. It’s loud and it’s really fun,” Braden said. “Football is my favorite sport (to watch). I was really happy to go to the Saints, Seahawks game last year because I’ve always wanted to go to a playoff game.”
Last season, Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin tossed a ball to Braden in the stands during pre-game warm-ups. He lists that as his favorite moment from a game he has attended and hopes to get the ball signed by Baldwin.
Braden has also attended Seattle Mariners games and Spring Training. During spring break, he traveled to Texas and went to a couple of Houston Astros games. He has attended many Washington State University (WSU) baseball games in Pullman, but has also traveled to California, Oklahoma, Arizona and Oregon to watch the Cougars play. Cy is good friends with WSU head baseball coach Don Marbut, who is a Grays Harbor native.
The Dohrmanns are also a regular at Montesano High School football and basketball games.
“I go to almost all of the home high school basketball games for Monte,” Braden said. “We’re at almost all of the Bulldogs’ football games that are in this area.”
