The Disabilities Allies Coaches Advocacy Group distributes a quarterly newsletter to keep its members up to date on news, deadlines and other association happenings. The newsletter also serves to let members know what the group is working on, highlighting group members and information on how you can get involved. Below is a letter from group chair Kate Ward. To read the full newsletter, click here.

To our Coaching Community,

Life is busy again! Fall is one of the busiest times of year for me as a college coach, and for my work with United Soccer Coaches as we gear up for the Convention and our first ever Disability Awareness Week. As some of you may know, I’m also a member of the US Deaf WNT and am on the board for USA Deaf Soccer, and we are busy preparing for the 2022 Deaflympics in May of next year.

My days seem to fly by and time often seems to get away from me at this time of year. As coaches, we all know this feeling of chaos. However, an important reminder is that this chaos is the sum total of getting to do what we love to do – coach and spread the joy of this beautiful game. Sometimes, that reminder is necessary as we get lost in the mundane, every day things of coaching – early mornings and late nights on the road, disappointing losses in overtime, never really having an off day during season (as I sit here typing this on my “off day”), tough conversations with players. Yet, there’s also so much joy in this profession – sharing laughter on the bus with your players and staff, great wins in rivalry games, building relationships and leaders of the next generation, and getting to do what you love to do every single day you step on that beautiful field.

I recently was reminded of how unique my position is and how much I have to be thankful for because of what I get to do for a living. One of the coolest things about being a part of US Deaf Soccer is that I get to help pave the path for the next generation of deaf athletes. We often have parents of deaf children who reach out to us and share their stories, and ask if there is a way to get their child involved. While our Youth National teams are still in the works, we work hard to connect with deaf children through youth clinics and camps. There is nothing more gratifying than helping a deaf child connect with other people like him or her. This week, we had a parent of a seven year old girl who wears hearing aids and just started her first year of club soccer ask for more information about the program. We exchanged a few emails, and he sent a few pictures and videos of his daughter. She’s so excited to connect with us. Each moment like this is indescribably special to me and my fellow teammates. Though hearing devices are widely used across the US and hearing “loss” is surprisingly common, it’s still extraordinarily special to meet a young child who is experiencing the same things that I did as a child, and to know that my teammates and I have the ability to positively impact his or her life through a sport I love so much.

How lucky are we as coaches and stakeholders in the soccer community, to have the opportunity to positively impact the lives of the next generation in our every day lives. Sometimes, that’s lost in the chaos of season. It’s important that we let these little moments sweep us away and remind us just how lucky we are to live our lives on the soccer field.

Kate Ward