Everyone knows about the star athletes who have D-1 or even professional aspirations, but no one hears about the guys who bust their butt for the team. In this case I’m talking about Max Klosterman.

Max plays football here at Elder but that wasn’t always the case. Klosty was born with a chest indentation called pectus excavatum in medical jargon. Max’s sternum was indented and each year the severity of that indent increased. It even got to the point where his sternum was actually lying on his heart. At this point Max’s doctor put a metal bar in his chest effectively straightening that concave sternum.

According to Max this was one of the most painful surgeries a person can have. In result of this intense surgery, Max was in the hospital for about a week drugged up on heavy painkillers. His sternum was essentially being bent back to normal. One cannot imagine the pain.

With this metal bar in his chest Max had to put his love for football on the hold. His doctor told him it would be not in his best interest to play such a high risk sport as football. A hard hit to the chest could do some serious damage. So instead of totally forgetting about the sport he chose the next best thing. If he couldn’t help the team as a player he would help as a team manager. He has helped with all sorts of athletic problems with his partner in crime, Ryan Bengel.

After he finally got the bars removed from his chest he jumped at his chance to play the sport he loved again. This was a quick transition because he healed exceedingly well. If you ask you could even get a peek at Max’s gnarly scars on either side of his body.

He currently is a corner and does his best to keep the offense on their toes. You can see Max at any football practice working hard and playing the game he waited so long and endured so much pain to play.

It’s people like Max who are the spirit of Elder. Guys with the will to carry on no matter what challenges face them. Striving for the things they love even with incredible pain and suffering on the line.