Everybody who attends the university’s athletic events knows who Strittmatter is. Kent State athletic director Laing Kennedy recalls first meeting her at a game after hearing a shrieking cheer. “I said, ‘What in the world is that?’ ” he says. “And then I see this little kid.”

Since then, the two have become close, and the athletic department has become very special to Strittmatter.

“From Heather’s point of view, we have become her family,” Kennedy says.

Strittmatter, who has a mild mental disability, lives by herself. Her mother is deceased, and her father is not around, Kennedy says, which is why she holds Kent State sports so close to her heart.

Kennedy says the players and coaches respect Strittmatter. “They all love Heather,” he says. “It’s like something is missing when she is not at a game.” The gymnasts, for example, feel like they can’t start without her, he says.

Ryan Pedon, the director of basketball operations, knows how popular she is around campus. “Everyone on campus is well aware of who she is,” Pedon says. “That’s because of the fact that she is so loyal and so passionate and so supportive of all of the athletic teams, and it is very appreciated by all of us.”
Pedon says he can always count on Strittmatter being at the games, yelling her praise for the team.

“She’s very enthusiastic, and that’s probably the one thing that stands out the most about her, how passionate she is about all of the Kent State teams,” Pedon says.

Strittmatter doesn’t only cheer because she loves the teams. She wants to will them to win. “She actually thinks the louder she yells, the better chance we have of winning,” Pedon says. “If all of the fans thought like that, this gym would be an even tougher place to play.” Then he laughs. “If all of the fans yelled and cheered like she did, then we would never lose at home at any sport.”

Strittmatter not only cheers loudly but also makes signs for the players. Pedon recalls a sign — one of the many — that read, “Love my hot Flashes.”

“She was always checking back with me to make sure I put the signs up in the locker room,” he says. “She makes posters for the players, article cutouts, picture cutouts. She spends countless hours working on these signs. To me, this shows her loyalty to the program.”

Along with making signs for the players to put in the locker room and for showing in the crowd, Strittmatter stops in the office on a regular basis to see how everything is going and even makes cards, like for Valentine’s Day, for the women’s team, says Amanda Burke, the women’s basketball administrative assistant.

She also makes signs for the softball team, head coach Karen Linder says. “She supports our softball athletes just as much as she supports the athletes in more visible sports like basketball,” Linder says.

“She’s always excited about whatever the upcoming game is.”

Along with watching the teams, she also loves getting to know the players personally. “She’s the first one that’s always asking for a media guide,” Linder says. “That gives her the information, her way of finding out the information of the players individually.”

Kennedy looks out for Strittmatter. Whenever he does something nice for her, she turns around and does something nice for him, he says. He gave her an all-access pass for the games last year. After that she made him a pass. “Those are the kinds of things you hang on to,” Kennedy says. “She gave me an Easter Bunny pass.”

Strittmatter is on her own and walks everywhere she goes, but Kennedy makes sure she has a ride home from games. On one of the many snowy nights in January, it was particularly bad outside after a game, Kennedy says. “One of the campus patrolmen had his patrol car out here and offered to give her a ride home, and I thought that was fantastic,” Kennedy says. “It gets to the point where you look out for her safety.”

He continues, “It really tells me it’s OK to take time and stop and give thanks for what you have,” he says. “You do something nice for Heather, like take her home, in response, she will bring you a poster. It will be a handmade poster of one of our teams. She says, ‘I just want to thank you for being nice to me.’”

The sports teams are aware of how in awe she is of the athletes and try to return the kindness. “We have autographed more items for her in three years than I think any person in the history of college sports,” Pedon says. “I don’t know where she keeps them all, but she’s always looking to get things autographed, which is just part of her being such a great fan.”

Pedon says he knows Strittmatter will always be there for the teams. “She’s always the first one to give you a five when you go out on the court and the first one to give you one going off the court as well,” he says.

Strittmatter’s loyalty doesn’t hinge on whether the teams win. She has unconditional love for the Kent State teams, even though victories are often nothing but distant memories.

Even if one of the teams has a tough loss, and the fans begin grumbling, Kennedy thinks to himself, “Well, Heather still loves us.”

Strittmatter just gets enjoyment out of watching the teams play, softball coach Linder says. “I think it kind of validates the hard work and the effort that our athletes put into this when other people can get joy from it. It helps them know that people appreciate the time and effort. She really is the super fan.”