My Dad, The Chiefs Super Bowl, and how it connects us

As we head toward another Chiefs Super Bowl, a potential history-making three-peat, I find myself thinking about something even more special than the game itself. For me, this event isn’t just about football. It’s about the last great memory I have with my Dad.

My Dad, Jon Thurmond, was a HUGE Chiefs fan. They were his favorite team of all time. Growing up, I watched countless games with him, and every Sunday was an event. He was passionate. He’d yell at the TV, curse when things went wrong, and cheer when they went right. If you were anywhere in the house, you knew when the Chiefs were playing, whether you wanted to or not.

In 2022, my Dad was diagnosed with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), a cruel disease that slowly stripped away his independence, his memories, and eventually, his life. By the end of the year, he was in hospice. By early 2023, he was sleeping more than he was awake, and when he was conscious, his lucidity was slipping away.

One Last Super Bowl with My Dad

When the Chiefs made it to Super Bowl LVII, my Dad was excited. Even through the fog of his illness, he understood what it meant. Before Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, he had endured the same 50-year drought every Chiefs fan had suffered through. Now, watching them make the Super Bowl again? It was a fans’ dream come true.

Two days before the game, at 9pm at night, I got a call from my Mom. She was very upset and I could hear my Dad in the background clearly upset too. He had just woken up, fully lucid, and he thought that the end was very near for him. I rushed over to my parents house, a 40-minute drive, to be by his side.

When I arrived, I hugged my Dad and comforted him. There were tears. And then he asked me why I was there at night. His PSP was kicking back in. His memories fading again. I stayed for a few hours and then returned to my amazing wife and kids.

Final Memories

That Friday night made me realize just how little time we had left. So I decided to watch what was clearly going to be the last Super Bowl my Dad got to see with him. I went over and spent hours with my parents watching the game, doing the football party thing. Talking about the game and making predictions. Cheering the big plays, stressing the mistakes. It was fun.

During the game my Dad was mostly lucid. He was enjoying it. He had moments of confusion, including getting mad thinking my Mom and I were cheering for the other team (we would never do such a thing against the Chiefs). He got to watch his beloved Chiefs win the Super Bowl one last time. He was happy. It was a great experience.

Super Bowl LVII was the last time I got to see my Dad lucid, or even awake for that matter.

The End

On Monday, February 20th I got a call. The hospice nurse had checked him. He was in the final stages of dying. He wouldn’t be waking up again.

I remember the numbness I felt when I got that call. The calmness I had taking it and deciding my next steps. I remember calling my wife, starting out calm, then breaking down on the phone with her.

I spent the next few days at my parents house, only coming home to sleep. Every time I went home, I braced myself for the call that would tell me he was gone. My wife was by my side. We made sure our three kids got to see Papa one last time. Friends and family visited.

In the middle of the day, on February 22nd at exactly 3:02pm he took his last breath. My final memory of him being awake was of him celebrating a Chiefs Super Bowl victory.

Why Share

I share this story for several reasons. For one, to remember him and his love for the Chiefs. For another, because events in my life in recent years, experiences, losses of family and a friend, have made me face my own mortality. Sharing this experience, this piece of my life is a bit of a catharsis. And sharing it helps make it part of my history and my legacy.

Finally, I share this to express my gratitude. Both to my Dad for helping make me the man I am today, and to the Chiefs organization for giving us that one last, unforgettable Moment together.

So, thank you to the entire Chiefs team. You helped give me a memory I’ll cherish forever.

Go Chiefs!

P.S. I had the honor of writing a eulogy for him that helps express the kind of person he was. If you are interested you can find that here.