Week 5 fan: Linda Barlett

Gail Franklin

PLEASANT GAP -- This week's fan of the game represents all those die-hard Nittany fans who can't go to Penn State games but are no less dedicated for it.

Catrina Rawson

Linda Bartlett, of Pleasant Gap watches the Penn State football game against Wisconsin with her nurse Shonnie Robb, Saturday, October 13, 2007 in Pleasant Gap. CDT/Catrina Rawson

Who should be the Penn State fan of the year, as featured in the CDT?

Linda Barlett, who was paralyzed from the neck down after a 1983 car accident involving a drunken driver, knows her Penn State football. She watches every game from her wheelchair in her living room and demands silence when the game is on.

She had to listen to the radio when a few of the games were on the Big Ten Network, which her cable provider, Comcast, does not carry.

Barlett, who turned 60 last month, was decked out in a navy blue Penn State sweatshirt for Saturday's homecoming game.

A Bellefonte native, she began to watch the games after high school and then became a true fan about 20 years ago.

"I watch all the games, and they make my Saturdays," Barlett said. "I look forward to each game."

As Penn State scored a touchdown in the third quarter, she smiled widely, and then when the action started again, she whispered directions to the players.

Barlett and one of her nurses, Shonnie Robb, are intent on each play.

"Oh! Interference!" Robb yells. "He had the ball in his hand. That should be against Wisconsin."

Barlett and Robb are a good pair. Robb has the voice to yell everything Barlett is thinking. Barlett whispers or mouths most of her words because she has a tracheostomy tube. She also is on a ventilator 24 hours daily, and because she is a quadriplegic, she requires round-the-clock nurse care.

"I love being there on game day," said Sue Narehood, who has been a caregiver for Barlett for eight years. "She gets very excited. She gives the players advice, and she gets into it."

Narehood and Robb are two of the dozen nurse's aides and li censed practical nurses who care for Barlett. They must adhere to a strict schedule to keep Barlett healthy.

While the Pleasant Gap woman has had medical difficulties in the past 24 years, she practically glows in the blue and white colors of her favorite team on Saturday.

Narehood said the average life expectancy of a quadriplegic is about 18 years, so she's inspired by Barlett's health and happy attitude. Narehood said Barlett is in charge of every detail of her household.

"She makes up her own grocery list -- we don't plan the menu," Narehood said. "She does everything really. She just can't physically do it."

Barlett doesn't think she's special, though, and said her nurses take good care of her and have become like her family. "I've been very lucky to live this long," she whispered.

However, Barlett is the first to admit that she likes to have everything just so, including her game days.

Her advice to the Penn State players is to keep up the good work and stay out of trouble.

FAN of the game: Linda Barlett, of Pleasant Gap

Favorite Game: "Any game where Penn State beats Notre Dame is a good game for me."

Favorite cheer: We are ... Penn State.

Why I'm the best fan: Barlett watches every game, or listens to the radio, and makes sure her house is decorated in blue and white and her medical needs are met before game time so she can take in every detail.

Why I should win the contest: Barlett shrugs as if to say she's just thankful for the chance to watch each game. Memo: