NEW ORLEANS — Spokane Native and former Washington State Universtiy and New Orleans Saints football player Steve Gleason was featured on an episode of HBO's 'Real Sports with Bryant Gumble' on Tuesday night.
The episode had a segment on Gleason's time apart from his family during the coronavirus pandemic. Due to his ongoing battle with ALS, Gleason was forced to be separated from his family for months as New Orleans dealt with surging cases of the new virus.
"The crazy phenomenon about ALS is it's a disease that isolates and quarantines people from not only the world, but also their families. In that sense, my family and I have been evolving and finding solutions to isolation for nearly a decade," Gleason said on the show.
While he was able to stay in his New Orleans home, Gleason was unable to be in the same room as his family, with his only visitors being caretakers.
"I call him the boy in the bubble. He lived in his room primarily, but the rest of the house, he could not come around us," his wife Michel said.
Gleason also spoke about his children, saying that the birth of his first child Rivers, named after his childhood memories of spending time on the Spokane River, gave him a "profound sense of purpose."
The episode also covered a YouTube interview show Gleason started during the pandemic called Behind the Glass, Soul to Soul with Steve Gleason.' Gleason has interviewed people from all walks of life, including the sports world and movie stars. He joked with Hugh Jackman that he originally invited Ryan Reynolds, but he declined.
Other topics included Gleason's famous blocked punt and when he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.
The episode in its entirety can be viewed on HBO or HBO Max.
