On Friday nights in Ashland, a white lab coat rests quietly on the sideline , a silent tribute to a physician whose presence is deeply missed.
Prior to every Southern Boone home football game, field physician Alicia Lange emerges from the locker room carrying a white lab coat. She makes her way down the sideline, carefully folds the coat, and places it as a solemn reminder that the doctor, though gone, is never truly absent.
“As long as I’m on the sideline at Southern Boone, I will carry this lab coat out to the field every game,” Lange said.
The coat serves as a tribute to Dr. Luke Stephens, a family physician who stood beside Lange on those Friday nights for more than seven seasons. He was a cornerstone of the MU Health Care clinic in Ashland , an institution he played a significant role in establishing.
“(Dr. Stephens) never really stopped putting in an effort to make his patients’ lives better,” said Alex Zweig, a fellow family physician at the clinic. “He would always go above and beyond for anybody that needed help.”
This past summer, Stephens received a devastating diagnosis of colon cancer.
“It was a shock to all of us,” Zweig said.
Just five weeks after his diagnosis, Dr. Stephens passed away at the age of 44.
“It was just sadness,” Zweig said. “I did get to see him in the hospital the evening before he passed away, and got to give him a hug, and I think that was the first real hug we’ve ever had. I feel like it was a really powerful connection.”
Beyond his clinical work, Stephens was a dedicated educator who nurtured the aspirations of young individuals pursuing careers in healthcare. He served as the program director of the University of Missouri Primary Care Sports Fellowship and as associate program director of the Family Medicine Residency at the university.
His commitment extended to rural communities as well. A graduate of Iberia High School, Stephens embraced his roots and went on to serve as the medical director of the Rural Health Research Center at MU.
He made a deliberate choice to remain in mid-Missouri, and those who had the privilege of learning and working beside him continue to feel his lasting influence.
“I still haven’t fully processed him being gone, honestly, it happened so quickly,” Zweig said. “It still feels so recent that I still feel like I’m going to see him sometimes in the clinic or in the medical school. I think about him all the time.”
At Southern Boone’s final home football game of the season, the community gathered to honor Dr. Stephens in a meaningful and heartfelt tribute.
“Thank you for every game you covered, thank you for every athlete you covered, thank you for every family you served,” the Southern Boone PA announcer said. “Dr. Stephens will forever remain a part of Southern Boone football.”
In recognition of his profound impact on the Ashland community, Stephens’ family was presented with a Southern Boone football bearing his photograph.
“He simply showed up week after week, season after season, because he loved this community and the young people who wore the Eagles uniform,” the PA announcer said.
