It’s rare that Rhuben Ellis and Clara Ellis miss one of the Selma Parks and Recreation Department’s youth football games during the season. Almost every night the couple is at Memorial Stadium and cheering loudly.

They don’t have any particular rooting interest. Instead, they cheer for all the teams and all the players. When one of the players needs equipment, they help out however they can to make sure that child gets what he needs to get on the field.

Selma Parks and Recreation Director Terry Jackson took notice and wanted to thank them in a special way. On Friday night in Orrville, he finally got the chance.

Jackson surprised the couple with “best fans” awards Friday night at Keith High School at halftime of the Keith-Selma boys’ game.

“They come out every year and get a schedule and they just come to the games basically every day,” Jackson said. “They sit up and watch the kids and then they help the kids. Some of them they will take home and some of them they will help if they don’t have any money, they will help get what they need.”

The award isn’t something the recreation department officially hands out. Jackson awarded it as a personal gift because he felt like it was important to thank them for all of their support through the years.

It’s not something that he’s done before, but he felt the Ellis’ more than deserved some recognition.

“They always ask me ‘Do you have any kids that want to play real bad that may not have nothing?” Jackson said.  “And I might say ‘yeah, I have a kid every day that walks out here and he can’t get his equipment.’ They’ll ask me what he needs and he’ll get it. That means a lot to me. That means they just care about the kids.”

Ellis said he coached 14 years for teams in the city’s youth football league because he enjoyed being around the kids.

“During that time I bought many footballs, shoes, many lunches and dinners for kids,” Rhuben said. “What they would need that they didn’t have, we’d buy it. I’d buy helmets for them and all that kind of stuff. We just like to support them.”

Rhuben said in most years he and Clara do not miss a single youth football game. Considering the youth league games take part on just about every night of the week, that’s quite a feat.

Now he and Clara are retired. There’s nothing they enjoy more than spending their time giving back to local youth and watching a game.

“I really think that when God blessed me and my wife, I really feel like I should bless somebody else,” Rhuben said. “It is a great feeling to be able to help somebody’s kids.