By Terra Avilla
I would like to take this week to write about one of my all-time favorite people in our community. Someone who, if you have ever attended a Lassen High School Football game or a LCC Baseball or Basketball game, you most definitely already know him , even if you don’t know his name. I guarantee you could pick out his booming voice from the crowd – Sean Cipriano.
I met Sean in my infancy stage of living in Susanville as he was at every single LCC game, and is quite possibly the best and most dedicated fan we have cheering for our home teams.
I remember I was sitting in the grandstands, and here came Sean in his Giants (Buster Posey) Jersey yelling “DEFENSE!” at the top of his lungs. We were down by like 8 runs in the 9th inning, but his enthusiasm was contagious.
Granted our whooping and hollering did not change the score, however his enthusiasm made watching the game that much more enjoyable.
During football season, you can see Sean or “Big Sean” (how he introduced himself to me the first time we met) cheering on our Varsity boys on the sidelines. Yelling words of affirmation and positive “You can do it” type chants.
He is never negative and is never a fair-weather fan. When Big Sean cheers for your team, he cheers with his soul and it shows.
For the past six years I have been lucky enough to cheer along with him, I know Sean to be sweet and kind. I recently taught at Lassen College in their Life Skills class and Sean literally brightens any room he walks into. If cheering up people was a superpower, Sean would be the master.
Over the past decade Sean’s spirit has been lent to more than just cheering on our athletes. Sean has competed in several activities such as the Special Olympics Bowling Team, weight-lifting, races, bake sales, car washes, and he volunteered to take Polar Plunge. All to help out a good cause.
Sean is always willing to lend his big personality to those around him to make a difference. And a difference he does make.
The world would be a kinder, more exciting and enthusiastic place, if we were all a little more like Sean, who of course is one of the reasons I love the place we live.
