-Ed. Note: This was sent to us from an Atlanta United Founding Member who wishes to remain anonymous.
Dear Mr. Blank,
I wanted to take a moment on this Soccer Eve you’ve created for us to say thanks. As a 40-year-old native of Atlanta, I can only liken the excitement I have for the match tomorrow to that of a 5-year-old on Christmas Eve.
First, let me state that after my parents of course, I owe much of what I have to the game of soccer. From the day I came home from school as a 5-year-old and told my parents that I wanted to play all the way to today, 35 years later, soccer has been a constant in my life. Soccer gave me a personality – my involvement taught me leadership, responsibility, commitment, and drive that made me who I am. Soccer taught me passion – whether it was trying to get better in my playing days or supporting a team as my playing days became numbered. Soccer gave me community – no matter where I went I had a common language I spoke with others and a place where I belonged. Most importantly, it gave me family – I met my wife on the soccer field and together we have two beautiful children.
Thank you Mr. Blank. Thank you for bringing two things I love so dearly, soccer and Atlanta, together. You’ve guaranteed that I’ll be able to continue to share this passion with family and friends well beyond my playing days in the city that I love. While my reasons may be the same or may be different from others, I think I speak for somewhere north of 30,000 other lovers of the game to tell you that we’re grateful you saw past the naysayers and those who didn’t believe in our city. Thank you for creating a club that will give us that personality, will give us that passion, will give us that community, and will give us the family that Atlanta United FC will provide. Thank you for supporting the beautiful game in Atlanta.
Sincerely,
A Founding Member, #17