Sitting on the Croatian beach watching the sunset with a couple glasses of wine was incredible. One of my best friends from childhood and I reflected on our years of being friends and how we got to where we are now. One of the topics we discussed was how I always write about my immigrant experience. 

At some point during our conversation, I told him I feel guilty sharing it, because it is always the same tone and theme. His response was simple: who cares? He went on to explain that in the space and time in which we reside, we can afford a few minutes for a story of an immigrant doing positive things for the community. 

In his witty way, he spewed some vulgarity and urged me to keep sharing.

So I am here to share a story on how soccer has impacted my life in a positive way, and to highlight the work my childhood friends and I are doing to make a difference in the soccer community. 

Before I could speak English, I learned how to kick a ball. 

When my family and I immigrated to the States in 1998 from Siem Reap, Cambodia, my closest companion was a soccer ball. Soccer represents loyalty, and I learned that at a very young age. 

Soccer was there for me when I was living away from my parents at Watt Svay, a Buddhist temple, so I could go to school. It was there for me when I was living at the temple and did not have enough money to buy a nhom pangh, a Khmer version of a Vietnamese banh mi. It was there for me when we first landed in the States. That was over two decades ago, and until this day, soccer continues to play a pivotal role in my adult life. 

While my parents were busy working multiple jobs and trying to attend adult education classes in the evening, I would bike to either Ainsworth or Oak Park to practice on my own. And even though I did not know how to ask to join a game or practice, I would stand and watch like a creep, hinting that I wanted to participate. 

Initially, I was shy when it came to speaking, but I was never shy about attempting the Maradona or the rainbow on other kids, even though more than ninety percent of the time, I would fail at it. Being able to participate in those practices was a huge win for me, because on the pitch, I felt the same as any other kid, regardless of skin color or family financial situation. Sometimes, I even forgot that I was a foreigner because I felt wanted, like I belonged. 

I was obsessed with soccer. After my own practice was done, I would practice with the older boys, the younger boys, and even the girls. 

I was madly in love with the game. Soccer gave me comfort and freedom. It gave me a boost of self-esteem, it gave me purpose and the foundation for a new me. It gave me an opportunity to reimagine my own self, which  meant wearing my entire uniform on game days in third and fourth grade to school, cleats included, because coming to school with my full kit made me feel great about myself, and taught me about self-worth and how to appreciate myself. 

Because off the pitch, I did not like how a few bullies made me feel about myself. Many people made me feel welcome, but unfortunately, the few negative voices echoed the loudest. When you were being told to go back to your country and your family eats dogs, and people say it so factually, I began to believe it, at least a little. I was not always picked on when I was growing up -- maybe soccer had something to do with it -- but there were times that peers would remind me, not in the nicest way, that I was different. Not because I wore my entire soccer uniform to school, but the fact that my English was trash and I looked different. 

Soccer was a friend that never judged. It just gave me an opportunity to do my best. It taught me to block out the unnecessary noises and focus on the things that mattered. 

Because to me, I was a soccer player, not just a new foreign kid. 

As I got older, my identity in my small community of St. Louis Park, Minnesota became Van Hong, a Cambodian immigrant and a soccer player. 

Most of my friends growing up were athletes, specifically soccer players. Over the years, we became extremely close. Things did not change when we all split up during our college years. In fact, our love of soccer was the magnet that drew us all back together post-college. 

During a time of trying to figure out our next chapter as adults, we all relied on pick-up soccer games to unlock those questions. Pick-up soccer games at Louisiana Oaks became our sanctuary, a place where all could come together to play soccer, reconnect with old friends, and continue to reinforce some old relationships, strengthen others, and create new ones. 

But as competitors, we all wanted more. Instead of just meeting up to play soccer a few times a week, we decided to file paperwork to join the Minnesota Amateur Soccer League. We started at division 4 and won our way up to the division 1 level. 

Creating a men’s league team was awesome, but we wanted to be more. We wanted to make an impact in the community. 

One day after a pick-up session at a local tavern, we came up with an idea, which was to host a street soccer tournament. The proceeds were to be donated to a few high school graduates to help them pay for college. 

We hosted our first street soccer tournament in 2014. Coupled with donations from our friends, family members, and extended network, we were able to raise about $2,500. 

Next, we had to figure a way to distribute the money that we raised. Our solution was to leverage social media to have students apply. Our challenge was to make them reflect on how soccer has impacted their life in a positive manner and write about it. 

Since 2014, we have grown from providing 2 scholarships to 13 in 2018. Overall, we’ve been able to give around $30,000 to 33 students to help them pay for college. This year we are planning to donate $20,000, which, if my math is correct, is a growth of 1500%. We are extremely proud of the work we have done, creating a platform that allows us to make a positive impact within our local soccer community. 

In the grand scheme of a full college tuition, however, our donations barely scratch the surface. And ultimately,  the monetary value of the scholarships is just one part of a bigger picture. . Our vision is to provide additional support to the next generation of soccer players in our community to obtain a higher education degree. 

Because looking back on our diverse experiences growing up in St. Louis Park, it was not the money that shaped us. It was the away game pickups. It was the opportunity to travel. It was the extra things that parents did to ensure every kid on the team had a positive experience, like having kids other than yours sleeping on a hotel cot or floor because their own parents could not afford the hotel fee. 

Soccer in Minnesota has been booming over the last 5 years or so, maybe longer. And looking around the community, we are the only men’s team in a local league that is paired with a nonprofit to help players pay for higher education. This makes us unique. We are driven to make a positive impact in the broader soccer community because most of us did not get to where we are alone. 

Spam FC Scholarship Foundation was founded by a group of seven childhood friends from St. Louis Park, Minnesota. We are a mixed bag of American born soccer players and immigrants. While we all came from different walks of life, soccer allowed us to grow together into this space. 

Spam FC Scholarship Foundation is much bigger than us. We are volunteers that dedicate late nights to finding ways to help others. Our story is about self-improvement, continual growth and coming together. We want to build a community that is inclusive and a platform where everyone can contribute to make a positive impact. 

Right now, our college scholarship applications are open on spamfc.com. It will close on August 18, 2019. Applicants can apply for one of 6 scholarship categories ranging from Spam FC Scholarships, STEM and Named Scholarships. Applicants need to have at least a 2.5 GPA and do not have to play soccer in college. 

We certainly welcome donations but more importantly we want others to understand why we exist and how they can help. 

Our mission is to help students who have been positively impacted by soccer pay for college. We are able to help them financially by hosting a formal gala in January, a scholarship tournament in June, a Beer with Benefits event at a local brewery in September and by participating in Minnesota Give to the Max Day in November. 

Until tomorrow’s tomorrow, my immigrant story will be retold many more times. I understand that my existence as an immigrant has been used as a wedge to drive division between people; please understand that is not our intention. Not just me, but many immigrants are trying their best to be decent citizens and contribute. I believe that the strength of a community is in the number of hands extended down to help the next person up. That has been my experience and I hope we can overcome the division and help each other.