Harbor View played for Katie

Submitted by Laura Gelgand

The soccer ball flies toward the goal with all the force a 4-foot, 6-inch, 70-pound third-grader can muster. The goalie dives for it, but too late. Goal! “Is that five or six?” one of the parents asks. It’s five. Five to zero, and the Harbor View Vikings are losing for the third day in a row. But you’d never know it by the pure glee on those Viking faces.

“We’ve got spirit! Yeah, yeah, we’ve got SPIRIT…” the Harbor View girls cheer as they jog back into position for the kick-off after the other team’s goal for the 16th time in three days. No one really cares what the score is. Parents always say that, players always act it; but this time, they mean it. Because this time, they’re not playing for themselves. This time, they’re playing for Katie.

One month ago this group of 14 third- and fourth-grade girls was 15 strong: Ava, Bella B., Bella M., Bianca, Brooke, Camile, Fiona, Gabby, Grace, Julia, Katie, Lexi, Lily, McKyla, and Sofia. But Katie couldn’t practice two weeks ago, because she became sick. What everyone thought was the stomach flu, turned out to be a brain tumor. While Katie was undergoing treatment at the hospital, her classmates, friends, and teammates missed her. They wrote her name on all their shirts and promised to play hard and have fun no matter what…for Katie.

They certainly kept their promise, even the referees and other coaches commented on their amazing effort. As a coach I am so proud of them.

It was hard to imagine a more spirited and enthusiastic group of kids as they trotted off to the snack bar together after their last game. And even harder to imagine a more humbled group of parents than the ones who got to take their daughters home that night, with, “WE LOVE KATIE,” scribbled on their shirts.

We pray for Katie’s recovery and return to Harbor View and the soccer field. See you at Pilot Cup 2010, Katie!