ANAHEIM Celia Wilson has been by her granddaughter Morgan’s side since Tuesday evening when the 17-year-old Esperanza High student-athlete was rushed to the UC Irvine Medical Center after suffering a cardiac arrest during a training session.
On Thursday, Celia Wilson and several other family members took some time away from the hospital to participate in a prayer meeting dedicated to Morgan. The gathering was brief but the turnout was big and heartfelt, leaving the Wilson family deeply touched.
“It was the most moving thing I’ve gone through,” Celia Wilson said. “I knew that just from the hospital visits and all the people that are coming and seeing her that she’s touched a lot of people’s lives. But I had no idea about (the turnout) today.”
A crowd of several hundred people, made up of Morgan Wilson’s friends, teachers and fellow students, showed up at Esperanza on Thursday morning. They came together at a spot Morgan Wilson is familiar with – the school’s tennis courts. She was the Aztecs’ tennis captain last year, in addition to being on the track team.
“People have been putting up signs all over the city to pray for her,” Celia Wilson said. “She’s just a beautiful young lady.”
Morgan Wilson, who will begin her senior year in the fall, collapsed while warming up for a lesson at Anaheim Tennis Center, according to the school’s track coach, Rich Medellin.
“Because she is a minor all we can say right now is that she remains in critical condition,” John Murray, UCI Medical Center spokesman, said Thursday.
Medellin said doctors have been treating Wilson for a cardiac arrest. They placed her in an induced coma Tuesday, he said, and told her family they hoped to bring her out of it within 72 hours.
“She’s a stud,” her father, Scott Wilson, told KNBC on Thursday. “She is a strong girl, and so for something like this to happen, it’s just totally blown us away.”
Scott Wilson told KCBS: “There was nothing abnormal. Nothing that clued us into this. Nothing growing up. Nothing.”
He added: “We need prayers.”
After hearing Tuesday what had happened to Wilson, Alex Lanning began to plan a prayer meeting at Esperanza for her former tennis teammate.
Through posters that were placed on campus and in the neary neighberhood, word of mouth and social media, hundreds showed up to pray for Morgan’s well-being.
“I heard about Morgan’s accident and everything, and I just know how powerful prayer can be,” Lanning explained. “It brings a community together. Everybody here loves Morgan, and I wanted everybody to come to show their love and support not only for Morgan, but for her family.
“We just want her to know she’s loved.”
Members of seemingly every sports team at Esperanza flooded the tennis courts as did some of Morgan’s teachers and coaches. Members of the El Dorado High girls tennis team also took part.
At the start, the attendees formed a large circle and there was a moment of silence. Shortly after that, smaller groups were formed and people took part in prayer circles.
“I pray to God he just let’s us keep her,” Celia Wilson said. “We’re asking for our miracle.”
Morgan’s younger sister Katelyn, 14, was also in attendance.
“It’s really hard seeing (Morgan) like this,” she said. “I don’t know how else to put it, but it’s really heartwarming and touching to see that everyone cares about her like this.”
Contact the writer: kconnolly@ocregister.com
