When you think of preseason, what do you imagine? Probably not frigid water.
While the club is currently wrapping up the first trip of training camp in sunny Southern California, there’s another type of challenge facing a member of the Sounders FC organization. Senior Director of Business Operations Taylor Graham is plunging — literally — into Puget Sound in Friday’s Super Polar Plunge, benefitting Special Olympics Washington. The event will send Graham into the water every thirty minutes from dawn until dusk at Golden Gardens Park.
“I am a fan, contributor and recipient of inspiration from Special Olympics,” said Graham, who played for both the USL and MLS Sounders. “From the volunteers to the families and finally the athletes, it’s a great way to see sport in its purest form.”
Graham isn’t the only Sounder heading into the water this weekend to raise money for the Special Olympics.
“Andy Rose is participating in another event on Saturday,” notes Graham. “He is a great ambassador for Sounders FC and is always willing to roll up his sleeves and get dirty. He brings the same mentality he has on the pitch to his community efforts.”
Rose’s Polar Plunge event will include teams from the Seattle area, but the fourth-year Sounder will only have to make the jump once.
Graham has participated in other events for this organization in the past, but this one is especially enticing, despite the promise of a somewhat uncomfortable experience.
“It’s different, innovative, and slightly crazy,” said Graham. “Many of the same elements that existed when Roger [Levesque] and I scaled down a building this past summer in support of Special Olympics.”
With the club’s community initiatives being spearheaded by Levesque, Graham’s teammate at Stanford and with the Sounders, he knows this event is only one of many that will include Sounders participants in 2015.
“We made a fantastic hire in luring Roger Levesque to re-join the organization as the Director of Community Outreach,” Graham said. “He has spent much of the last three months evaluating our strategy and partnerships over the last six seasons and coming up with ways to narrow our focus while increasing our impact on the community front.”
Graham is still raising money to benefit Washington Special Olympics. To donate, visit his fundraising page. He will also be posting photos of his experience on Friday on his Twitter account.
