Nebraska woman’s ALS battle shows power of community support

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) — Tesla Oldfield Davis was a two-sport college athlete at Peru State who loved to move her body.

Years later, that athletic background would give her the mindset and community support she needed to face the biggest challenge of her life.

Gary Oldfield said his daughter was competitive and bubbly, someone everyone wanted to talk to.

“She was softball to start with and then a little bit later, they caught her running up the hills of Peru (State) and asked her if she’d run cross-country. She’d never done it before,” Gary Oldfield said.

Years later, Tesla found out she was pregnant. Amid the excitement, something felt off.

“She started having some twitching and tingling in her leg, thought maybe it’s normal. She’d never had a child before. So, waited a couple months. It got worse,” Gary Oldfield said.

Diagnosis and community response

Following the birth of her daughter, Harbor, and months of testing, 28-year-old Tesla received a devastating diagnosis of ALS.

“It takes your ability to walk, talk, and eventually breathe. And it took that progression,” Gary Oldfield said.

With an average life expectancy of 3-5 years, Tesla wanted to make the most of each day she had left.

“It was tough as a dad, because I watched her – maybe one of the fastest kids on her college softball team – and now she’s completely paralyzed in a wheelchair, but she would never let me get down. That kid was smiling all the time. So, that made it a little bit easier,” Gary Oldfield said.

As Tesla’s medical needs increased, so did the expenses. Nebraska’s athletics community stepped up.

The Nebraska Greats Foundation provides medical and financial assistance to current and former athletes at all of Nebraska’s four-year colleges and universities. They first gave Tesla a hospital bed so she could stay home with her daughter.

“And as her condition deteriorated, we helped with other needs as well, including hospital bills and medical bills and also eventually in-home care until the very end. Over the course of time, there was around $342,000 worth of grants that we okayed for Tesla,” said Monte Kratzenstein, executive director of the Nebraska Greats Foundation.

Kratzenstein said it’s important to Nebraska Greats to get to know the athletes their donations go to and their families, not just write them a check.

“I’m a big fan of that whole idea that the things that you learn in athletics, the perseverance and the resiliency and the strength facing adversity are things that you will use, and Tesla did that,” said Kratzenstein.

Making memories and finding support

Another nonprofit helped Tesla and Harbor make precious memories. Inheritance of Hope sent them to Disney World alongside other parents with terminal illnesses and their kids, called a Legacy Retreat.

“And they didn’t feel so alone. They realized there were other families that could relate to them. And then after their Legacy Retreat, they both continued through our online groups. We call it Hope at Home groups,” said Jill Thompson with Inheritance of Hope.

Tesla even attended virtual support groups from the ICU.

“They reached out and helped her so much,” Gary Oldfield said.

Tesla kept fighting well beyond doctors’ expectations, living 7.5 years with ALS. She took her last breath in August of 2025 at 34 years old.

“She was smiling that day,” Gary Oldfield said.

Gary’s home is still filled with Tesla’s warmth. His daughter’s legacy proves attitude is everything.

“One of her important quotes that she always told me, and it’s really fitting because of what happened in the end, but she said, ‘God puts air in your lungs, so live your life with purpose.’ And she truly lived her life with purpose,” Gary Oldfield said.

Tesla even created a website to support others battling ALS through their journeys.

Gary said Tesla’s daughter, Harbor, has her mother’s positive attitude and loving spirit. She’s now eight years old and is still supported by Inheritance of Hope through weekly support groups online with other children who have lost a parent to a terminal illness.

Both Inheritance of Hope and Nebraska Greats rely on donations and volunteers to operate.

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