Story Collection

When I was at the gym about a week ago I met this kid a bit younger than me and he asked me for help on a certain exercise. It honestly reminded me a bit of myself a couple years ago. The kid was of a different ethnic background though. I'm Hispanic and he was white. I really feel like at the gym stuff like race doesn't even matter. We're all there for the same reason and it can be a truly inspiring thing to see that in the end we all end up having more similarities than differences. The more I can connect with other people through fitness, the better.

When I was playing soccer at the park I saw this other guy there as well and thought "why not ask him to to play". It had turned out he had played in college as a goalie so we took a couple shots together and talked for a while. Just getting to know somebody outside my age range really showed me how sports can have such a unifying effect on our communities.

Many years ago, I volunteered to help at the special olympics. I was touched by the energy and excitement of the athletes participating. They gave it their all and were so encouraging to their fellow athletes. I felt humbled and inspired.

I joined softball with my friend and our team has a lot of diversity of people from different races. i feel like this has brought us all together as a community and has made me friends with all the girls

I never really participated in any sports until my freshman year of high school. I did it partly because I wanted a different group of friends that i knew I would spend a great deal of time with. Through our wins, our losses and all the hours spent practicing, quarreling and encouraging one another- one truth was clear: regardless of background, or family type or income- we either all won or we all lost, which meant at least on some scale we had to rely on more than just ourselves to accomplish the team's goals.

A complely different way I never quite knew would be a by-product of athletics is from a parents perspective. I have made lasting friendships as a result of taking my son to practice, games, outings etc. Parents from all walks of life getting together and celebrating/comiserating on their children's shared experiences. Those parents who may 'have it all' suffer the same when their kids get hurt in front of them. The 'have nots' will get an equally sincere high-five when there son pulls off a great play. After the pads and equipment are packed away in a box- the memories, friendships and relationships will continue long after that last wistle blows

One day, while working out at the gym, I saw an older guy around maybe 70 or 80. He was lifting weights. It was inspiring to me to see an older guy working on staying strong and healthy. It was cool. I want to be like that when I am his age.

When I was in junior high I transferred to a new school. I am an introvert and was looking for a way to connect with the other kids at school. I decided to join a school sport team. It happened to be soccer. I wasn't great at it at first, but the coach really made sure everyone was learning and had a chance to play. Over the next few years, I ended up developing friendships with many of my team-mates that lasts to this day. Our coach's attitude of focusing on being team and that we were all there to learn the game and how to be a team that worked together made a huge difference. I will always look back fondly on that time in my life and on being a part of that team. Unfortunately teams I have been on after that time did not always have the same positive focus. I wish all kids could have a team and coaching experience like that.