In 1999 while my mom was pregnant with me my father traveled to Sydney Australia to play in the Touch World Cup as a member of the USA Mens open team. Upon his return, he felt a need for a touch community of his own, he started the Portland Hunters and began coaching, playing, and helping build the touch community not only in Portland but nationwide. Growing up there was no where that felt more like home than the sideline of a Portland Hunters practice. Being thousands of miles from my extended family, the Hunters became that family for me, serving as surrogate aunties and uncles.

As I grew, other sports dragged me away from touch as the allure of the possibilities of running college track and field took hold. It wasn’t until I was nineteen that I realized my love of competition wasn’t enough to keep me in a sport that I didn’t truly love and living in a city that I didn’t truly love. When I finally left track behind I grew desperate for competition, and a community to call my own.

This led me in one direction, back home to Portland, and back home to touch rugby. Over the last three years since returning, I have learned more about myself as an athlete, human, and teammate than I could possibly imagine. Now, twenty four years after my father I have been presented with the opportunity to fulfill a life long dream of representing my country in international competition in the upcoming 2024 Touch World Cup. This is my touch rugby story but even more than that, this is my life story.

Unfortunately due to the amateur nature of the sport that I love, athletes must pay to play, even during international competition. This means that the cost of flights, food, and accommodations all rest on us as athletes. Despite currently working two jobs, the price that I face right now is larger than I will be able to shoulder alone. This is why I am here reaching out to you, my family and friends, to help me make a dream come true.