The locker room was about as gross as ever, cramped with more than a hundred people packed across all the benches. The coaches, clearly amped for the start of the season, ran us through their program. This was my third year of East Ridge Football, and my seventh if you count youth football. I scanned the room, spotting familiar faces everywhere, until a lanky guy standing alone in the corner caught my eye. He looked unsure of himself, hanging back like he didn’t know where to fit. I remembered having that same feeling my freshman year, so I went over and introduced myself. It turned out he was a foreign exchange student from Denmark. He told me he’d grown up playing soccer but wanted to try something completely different. I joked that football was about as far from soccer as you could get, but then I asked how he was feeling about everything. He admitted he was nervous and just hoping to make some new friends.
From then on, I made it one of my goals to help him feel comfortable on the field and with our team. Whenever we were doing warm-ups or drills, I tried to stay close by to offer tips and encouragement. I focused on making things fun instead of overwhelming, so he could learn without worrying about being judged. After practice, I would walk him through the plays we learned on offense and defense, explaining each position's job and why it mattered. Whenever he nailed something, I made sure to celebrate it and build his confidence. By the end of the first few weeks, I saw him laughing with the older guys, calling out all the plays we’d worked on, and even offering tips to the younger players. Seeing how far he’d come made me proud. He told me he was grateful I'd taken the time to coach him and get to know him.
East Ridge Football always displayed the idea of family and brotherhood among the players. Through that experience, I learned what it truly means to be a leader, not just excelling on the field, but stepping up when others feel overlooked. Those lessons carried into everything I do. As a wrestling captain, I made sure new recruits could handle the basics and stayed after practice to help those who needed extra guidance. On the track team, I coached JV runners, making sure they knew they were just as much a part of the team as everyone else. I even saw it during my hospital volunteering, whether that was checking in on quieter patients, asking them to come play bingo with the other people on the floor, or listening to new nurses vent about the stress of the job. The leadership lessons I learned from East Ridge Football had woven their way into things outside of just sports.
Over the years, helping people who started out feeling invisible become people who feel seen and valued showed me the real power of empathy. I learned that being a leader wasn’t about being the loudest or the most talented; it was about noticing who needed support and giving them the room and opportunity to succeed. Those lessons guide how I lead in every part of my life, whether that's coaching younger wrestlers, guiding JV runners, or working to include the quieter patients at the hospital. East Ridge Football wasn't just teaching me to be a better athlete; it was teaching me to be a better individual, someone who lifts others up and doesn't leave anyone behind.
A time I showed empathy toward someone different from me was while volunteering at Saint Therese Senior Living. I spent time visiting residents, many of whom were much older than me and had completely different life experiences. At first, it felt a little awkward because I didn’t always know what to say, and some residents were quiet or hesitant to talk.
One resident in particular stood out; his name was Berne. I started volunteering during dinner hours from four to six and helped serve meals every Sunday. Each night had a different menu. Over time, I got to know what he liked. He told me he went to UW-Madison, which is where I’ll be going next year, so we always had something to talk about while I served him. One Sunday night, when the menu included meatloaf, his favorite dish, he lit up and told me stories about the small diner he used to visit back home. Over the next several visits, we kept talking every evening. He shared stories about his family, his job, and life at college. I made sure to listen and respond to even the little details so he could see that I genuinely cared. I realized that showing empathy wasn’t about saying the perfect thing; it was about being patient, present, and making someone feel valued.
By the end of my time volunteering, he looked forward to seeing me each Sunday. That change showed me how much of a difference it makes when someone feels noticed and included. Even though we came from completely different generations, I felt a real connection with him because I took the time to understand him.
This experience showed me that empathy isn’t about having the same experiences; it’s about stepping up and meeting people where they are. Small actions like listening or sharing a meal can make a real impact. Football has reinforced that mindset. Being on a team taught me that everyone has a role. And like my coach said, “the star of the team is the team.” On the field, nothing works without trust, communication, and patience. Those lessons from coach Fritze carry over into life, shaping how I treat people every day.
Volunteering at Saint Therese and playing football have taught me the value of looking out for others, having their back, and making sure no one feels left out. Those lessons stick with me every day, whether I’m on the field, in the classroom, or just interacting with people around me.
When I joined the wrestling team as a seventh grader, the team had experienced some hardships, including a change in the coaching staff, that led to only nine kids joining the high school team. Having wrestled for eight years through the high school's youth program, I felt invested in rebuilding the team. I started by asking friends and family to join, getting a couple of my friends from football to try wrestling. Over time our numbers grew and in my sophomore season, I was named captain, giving me a renewed sense of pride and responsibility to the team. I talked to other students throughout the school along with many kids in my other sports and ended up with a little under twenty participants for my sophomore season. My junior season, however, was the best of my last five years on the team. First, I was invited to join the wrestling board to share my perspective as a team captain on several issues. Additionally, thanks to my efforts, about 25 kids joined wrestling with over half trying it for the first time.
My sophomore year was when Kyra joined the wrestling team. I had been wrestling at the high school level since my 7th grade season, yet this was the first time we had a girl join our team. While I had seen other teams in years prior have girls wrestle for their teams, girl wrestlers were scarce and infrequent. Initially, because most of the other people on the team had already gotten to know each other over the years and formed their cliques, she had trouble finding a group to fit in with. However, as a captain, I made it my goal to make everyone on the team feel included and like they belonged. I did my best to help make her feel comfortable on her new team. I introduced her to everyone on the team, taught her new moves after practice, and drove her to and from practice on days she didn't have a ride. By acclimating her to the team and making her feel at home away from home, she was able to form long-standing friendships with not only myself but the rest of the team as well.
The needs of the wrestling program have aided in my maturity more than any activity, role model, or coach ever has. I became a leader, conversing with schoolmates about joining the wrestling program, and taking an active role in recruitment. I began to listen to the needs of my teammates instead of putting them off, as I could bring them up in the board meetings and make a change for the better. Having to get myself to and from practice on time with all my gear taught me responsibility and time management, vital to my future schooling and career. For me, sports have served as a time for community building. It’s a chance to do something I love with other people who love the same thing. As we share the hardships, highlights, and memories of our sport, it creates an unbreakable bond that can only be described as something of a family. Building these relationships has fueled my desire for inclusion as I see the great friendships that come out of participating in sports. Ultimately, the relationships I have formed fuel the vision that inclusion is not a desire, but a necessity in transforming teams and communities for the better.
