The Why!

The 39 Hearts was founded by Rob Otey, in honor of his wife's late cousin. Darius was a stand out multi sport athlete from Orange County, VA. He played Football, Basketball, Soccer and Track. Darius was being recruited to play Division 1 Football and ended up choosing the University of Maine over other options. He chose UMaine after his official visit in January of 2018. Once on campus, Darius said it felt like home. Being from a small town in VA, Orono, Maine was a perfect match. Take that with the mix of an amazing coaching staff and the brotherhood of the team, it felt only right to call UMaine home. Darius left VA in early July to head to campus to start his college career. Sadly just a few short weeks in, on July 24th his life suddenly ended. He just finished some strength and conditioning drills when he attempted to tell his coach he wasn’t feeling well and ultimately collapsed and passed away on the football field. Darius lost his life from an aortic dissection. He had such a bright future in front of him with so much life to live. His name and memory will now not just continue on but will help and impact so many lives in the process through his foundation!