TRIMONT — After the unexpected loss of 19-year-old Karson Kent Janssen to undetected myxomatous degeneration of the heart in Nov. 2021, his legacy lives on through the Karson Kent Janssen Memorial Fund and Hoops for Heart event. Now in its fourth year, the event strives to inspire awareness for cardiac health and research, lend a hand to the community, honor Karson’s memory and carry the quote he abided by, “Be Nice, Be Neat, Be Humble.”

“Jolynn and Kent, Karson’s parents, worked at our school. And their children graduated from our school. And so, of course, everyone knew them and watched them as they were growing up and participating in athletics. All of that was important in the Janssen life. And for the community to come together, it was really easy to do that because this is a great family and Karson was a great kid. He was the kind of kid everybody liked and everybody wanted to call him their friend,” said Stannetta Svoboda, a member of the Karson Kent Janssen Memorial Basketball Committee.

The event will be from noon to 5 p.m. (doors open at 11 a.m.) on Saturday, Feb. 7, in the gymnasium at Martin County West-Trimont Elementary School. There is a ‘blackout’ dress code, and everyone in attendance is strongly encouraged to dress in all black. When guests arrive, they may view the “Making Things Better” wall, which displays scholarship recipients among MCW and the University of Minnesota, the donated AEDs (Automated External Defibrillators) and the positive impact that has been made.

MCW and Granada-Huntley-East Chain/Truman/Martin Luther basketball teams will face off in four games, beginning at noon for B-Squad Boys, 1:30 p.m. for B-Squad Girls, 3 p.m. for Varsity Boys and 5 p.m. for Varsity Girls. The Janssen family will speak during the games as a tribute to Karson. During the quadrangular competitions, a silent auction, a free-will donation bake sale, concessions, paper basketball/hoop purchases and half-time three-point shot contests will be available. Taking cardiac health awareness by storm, heart screenings will also be held and all slots have been filled.

“The message is very important,” said Svoboda. “Many times, people may think that people with disease, it’s someone older. Here’s a prime example of someone very young, athletic, someone you wouldn’t imagine having this type of illness. It was undetected. I think the biggest message we want to get out there is that heart awareness is important because it affects everyone.”

One hundred percent of the event’s proceeds will go to the Karson Kent Janssen Memorial Fund, which is a 501(c)(3) charity. The charity will grant scholarships to MCW and UMN students, and strongly focus and grant support to heart screenings, education, grief support and promoting community-wide kindness. Presently, $111,000 has been given towards scholarships, $28,585 towards 373 heart screenings by Screening America and $29,992 towards heart health awareness, grief support and Nice, Neat, Humble gifts.

“It’s inspiring,” Svoboda remarked. “You cannot imagine just the large number of people who donate, whether it be for the bake sale or the silent auction or people who are coming to the games. It’s just amazing.”

Since the beginning of the Karson Kent Janssen Memorial Fund and Hoops for Heart event, significant success and community reception have remained constant, as reported by Svoboda. She explained that businesses, No BS Performance, County Line Custom and Snyder Tree Service, many donors, workers and custodians, MCW teams and students and attendants have helped bring this event together.

“It truly shows that it takes a village to raise a child, but it’s a family. It’s like a whole family is coming together and not just the small Martin County West village, but other people who have also been affected. It’s amazing how, when people hear about it, they’re so open and so willing to help,” she said.

The Janssen family’s mission is to have more heart screenings available in the future, and the screenings are expected to be available this upcoming spring and fall for ages 11 to 34. Svoboda explained that the best way to carry out the mission of the Karson Kent Janssen Memorial Fund and Hoops for Heart is to support the event and be kind to others.

“[I look forward to] I think the celebration of Karson, and how he truly affected everyone in the community, and the words he lived by. I think even as an angel above, he’s watching over every one of us,” said Svoboda.