Hey, what's up everyone? Welcome to another episode of the Sounders FC podcast. A quick, quick one for you this week, but I thought it was important for us to... at least to recap, two really, really massive wins. You know, the Sounders coming off a victory at the weekend against FC Dallas and then followed up in midweek with a big win at home to San Diego. That leads them into...
a Sunday showdown with Minnesota United. I'm down here at the training ground. Just caught the end of training, was out there, had a chance to speak to Schmetz. It's a beautiful Seattle day, actually. You know what it was? Today's the first day.
in many years where I was like, man, I really miss training. Like I miss doing this every day because when it's a nice sunny day, the team's winning, there's no better place to be than on the football pitch with your friends and teammates and looking ahead to another game. So at the time of this recording, the Sounders have played 16 games. So Sunday is officially the halfway mark. And let's assume...
best case scenario, the Sounders were to win. That'd be 29 points. So on track right now for about 58 points, which is obviously more than enough for the playoffs. We sit at 26 right now. Seven wins, five draws, four defeats. 23 goals scored. I'd like to see a little bit more. But there have been maybe mitigating circumstances. Jordan's missed a chunk of the season. Albert's had his injuries. Paul Arriola, who was brought in to be a reinforcement attacking-wise, he's out.
De La Vegas had his injuries. There's been a lot of in and out. We're kind of now slowly as we head towards the Club World Cup. slowly rounding into getting people fit. Obviously, Jordan's back out training, but you still need some time to get the fitness and sharpness and strength back. So probably still a couple of weeks away from him.
But the team is rounding into shape. And I think at the halfway mark, we're sitting pretty well. And I say that because these last two performances were not good performances. They were not great. That's a good sign, though. When you win against the run of play, I feel like how many times does it happen where it's the opposite with us? I'll take it. You have to find a way to win games where you don't play well. That is the biggest sign of a good team. I grew up in...
London obviously 90s early 2000s where the cream of the crop was Manchester United I was an Arsenal fan and they were always you were trying to knock off I can't tell you the amount of games where I'd watched them play and they got battered I mean they were completely dominated in a game and then the final score you won 3-0 you know they found a way to win the game and I always remember when I even I played as a youth as well um and when I got to the pros and college as well
the teams that I was on that could find a way to win when you're not firing on all cylinders, I felt good about those teams. And I'm starting to get that sense about the Sounders now. I don't know yet what the ceiling for this particular 2025 version of the Sounders is, but... If we take the FC Dallas game, for example, statistically, possession dominates. 62% possession. Short attempts, they had 16, we had 13. Four and goal for us, five and goal for them.
They want great chances on either side, but 86-minute penalty that Albert Rusnak pointed to the back of the net. I thought it was a great decision by, I think Chapman was the ref. And I know Chapman, he's one of the better referees. For me, he's the best in this country. I like him a lot. I think he calls a good game. He's respectful. You can actually talk to him. Some refs don't even...
engage in any kind of conversation. He lets you at least have a word with him. He's reasonable. We'll kind of give you insight into what he's doing and he'll make big calls. That was a big decision because I didn't see it in real time. Me and Danny Jackson were up in the booth, the radio booth, calling the game on KJR.
I didn't know what he called. It was so quick. Right. But he had no doubts to make a big decision like that. And it was the right call. It was a penalty. And then just as confident as Chapman was, Albert Rusnak was also confident, stepped up. put the ball in the back of the net, and then you go home. You say, look, we won 1-0.
It was an early game as well. Everyone gets to go home, enjoy the Seattle sunshine, put your feet up, get a massage, have a glass of wine, whatever you need to do to regroup and retool. Because on Wednesday, you had another team coming in here. And it was a team that we kind of old one, I felt, because we went down to San Diego.
That was not a great afternoon. And we went down there, kind of got, you know, we got behind skits a little bit. And they came in here, and I'll say this, I was impressed by them. I thought they played quite well. I thought they were bold. I thought they kept the ball well. out-possessed us, which isn't always the biggest marker, but when you're a Brian Schmetzer-led team that emphasizes possession, I think when a team comes into Lumenfield and is brave enough to take you at your own game,
I'll give you credit where it's due. I'll give you a lot of credit where it's due. And the sounders were just off. You know, I saw Obed miss passes five or six of them that he hasn't missed in two years. So I'm like, you know what? We're just not at the races today. And sometimes those games happen.
You know, it was a bit clunky. Sometimes the run would come, but the pass wouldn't be there. Or the pass would be perfect, but the teammate didn't make the run. And it was just a bit off. Steph Wright keeps having a... great fight with Father Time. He's taking him to the 12th round right now. They're in the crazy boxing match right now. And Steph's on top. He's winning by points right now because some of the saves he's making, I mean, I just... And it's not just that. It's also...
So when Steph came into the league, the goalkeeper position was a very different position. Steph and I were drafted in the same year. So I've known Steph since college days. And back then, the goalkeeper stayed on the goal line for the most part and had to make saves. Today's goalkeeper in 2025, you have to be very good with your feet. And you've got to be a sweeper for the most part. Any free ball over the top, you might be asked to come out 35, 40 yards.
from your goal at time to clean things up because defenders are playing such a high line which the sounders do at home and Steph's had to learn and adapt his game that he was taught to the modern game and to be at the age he's at
To be doing it at that level, you know, I had a word with Schmetz outside and he goes, look, man, some of the saves that Steph makes, Steve, you know, it's like not many goalies in MLS are making those kind of saves. And as a coach, I agree with you. And he's still capable of being a match winner.
all these years later. The highlight of Isano's career, of course, is this big save in Toronto. We all know that save. But we're like nine years removed from that and he's still making saves of that caliber, of that level. And so... He was needed in midweek, and I thought he was fantastic. Two clean sheets in a row. And then when the goal was needed in midweek...
A guy who we've been very positive on. I think he's a fantastic player. I can see his ideas. I can see what he's trying to do even when it's not coming off. But... Strikers are judged by goals. I know you fans and I'm with you. I'm a fan of the team as well. You've got to score goals.
you have to score goals. And end of the day, no matter how good you are, how nice of a person you are, we want that ball in the back of the net. You're the number nine. And Jesus Ferreira got off the mark. And it was a brilliant goal because here's why. Him and Rothrock weren't playing that well. But what I love about Paul Rothrock, he always makes something happen. He could be having a blinding game, 10 out of 10. He could be playing 3 out of 10. Either one...
He'll either get a goal, an assist, get fouled for the penalty, get the other team's player sent off. He'll do something to impact the game. I love that about Paul Ruffrock. And he gets in behind on the right-hand side, as you saw, puts in a great cross. And the first touch from Jesus is good because I'm going to tell you, when you're moving at that kind of speed in the game and you take a touch away from the goal, he took the touch backwards.
And why he did that was to open up space for himself because the defender is expecting him to take a touch towards the goal. He's trying to go towards the goal. But you take a touch away from the goal, the defender doesn't see it coming.
Create space for himself. But I like the next piece even more. Because when a striker's low on confidence, sometimes they look for ways to not be under the pressure, not to be the one tasked with making the goal. He could have easily laid it off to Albert Rusnak. Rusnak was five yards away, had his hands out. You let it to Albert Rusnak. He's facing the goal, probably smashing into the back of the net. But...
There was one track mind in Ferreira's brain and that's what the great strikers do. They think in one way. They think goals, goals, goals. I played with Montero. I played with Dempsey. Oba. Eddie Johnson, Samuel Chowa, Blaise Kufo. I can go down the list. All of them would have shot that. They're not passing. No matter how open I might think I am, they're going to shoot. And if they miss, they put their hand up. Hey, sorry, I'll see you next time. Next time comes, they're going to shoot again.
because that's how strikers think. And when I saw that from Jesus Ferreira, I said, okay, we have a guy that can still get double-digit goals this year in all competitions, with all the games that are coming up, because he's now got the monkey off his back. You saw the relief in his celebration. You need that as a striker.
And he got that, was a match winner. Again, in a game where we didn't necessarily play well. And that's six points. You bank those. And you move on. And you say to yourself, like I told Schmetz this morning, I said,
It has to be a good feeling because you know your best football is ahead of you. You know at some point you're going to get most of your players back. Obviously, Arreola is done for the year, but Jordan will be back. He'll get... fit under his legs um you've got myself so you can score jesus can score jordan can score your albert back looking like himself um
Kent being a revelation on the left-hand side. You still have Georgie to come in and scare defenders. You have Ruffrock who makes things happen. You have Delevego who's playing back. I can just go down the list. You've got the best Saturday midfield pairing in the league in Christian and Obed, in my opinion. I don't take anybody above them.
At this point, I think they're just doing such a great job. We're going to miss Obed during the summer. I think Obed's going. Yeah, he's going. Yeah. We're going to miss him. So I don't want him to go because he's so good. So that will be, you know, but you have JP to come in. So this depth we've been talking about for the longest time, it's here.
And it's in action and it's being put to the test and it will be put to the test. But I think if you can win games where you're not at your best and you banked six points in two games where over 180 minutes, you didn't, you maybe played well for 20, 25 minutes. I think the opening of the Dallas sequence was maybe the best and then it kind of went around.
And then midweek was just a slagfest. Let's just find a way to win. And you did. And that leads you into your third home game in a week, which you don't often see. A chance to pick up a nine-point week, you know, those are key, man. Those are very key. And I think when a team is also winning, suddenly I'm not as tired, I'm not as injured, I'm not as sore. Everybody wants to play.
I'm curious what Schmetz would do with his lineup. I do think we'll see maybe a couple of changes. Well, we know that, you know, Kim Ki, he can't play. Obviously, he went down. So there will be a change in the lineup there. I think defensively on depth is good, man. Jackson, Kim, Jonathan Bell, Stuart Hawkins. I mean, any of the ones that I've played, hardly any of them ever put a foot wrong. Hardly. Of course, everyone makes mistakes, but you know what I mean? It's like they are...
So solid defensively. So dependable. So reliable. I just think... I don't want to get ahead of myself. I just think this team is primed to sort of like break out. We've been decent this season so far. We're sitting decent at the table. Decent points tally without being great. there's been moments there's been some performances at home where it's like oh man this is this is champagne football oh I see what we can do oh oh oh okay we've had that
St. Louis game at home comes to mind, but everybody kind of was doing good against St. Louis, so I don't know. And I think the coach got fired as well. But I think if you can get a win on Sunday, if we can pick up three points on Sunday. then you're looking into that Vancouver game. And you're going up there, and now you're going toe-to-toe with a team that's been the best team, in my opinion, so far.
Now you're going in there, you're maybe probably getting Jordan somewhat backish. Maybe you see him off the bench. I'd be hopeful. That's just me talking. Maybe he's not ready. Maybe he is. But you're getting closer to the return of the club's all-time leading goal scorer. There's so much to look forward to, I think. So I think we're in a very good position. I think Sunday will be tough. I think Minnesota will have a great coach.
I'm going to look up their standing on the table now. Yeah, they're third place. Yeah, and they've been playing well. One point over us. Yeah, and they've been playing well. But this is what the great Katie Keller would call a six-pointer because you pick up three points and you take off three.
points of the opponent and someone that's very close to you where you kind of need to do that and so I think we have the chance to do that but at the same time I still think that as the home team, no matter who you're playing, If you're the Sounders, you go for the three points. As good as Minnesota is, I think it's a game you're looking in the locker room and you're saying, this is a game we can win. Brian Schmetz is not going to be looking around and thinking to himself, you know...
I'm okay if we drop this one. I'm okay if we drop two points. No, home games are going to be the difference between high seeding in the playoffs, which makes a big difference. We don't want to go on the road again like we had to do a couple times last year. We want to be the highest seed. And... A nine-point week is at stake. In terms of line-up, Masovsky was scoring. Now, Jesus is scoring. This is what we call a good problem to have. Take your pick. Ball find form.
Both are doing well. Albert looks like he's back to himself. I think he's played a couple games at the 10. That probably, you know, a player like Albert probably saw like, you know, hey, I still want to remind you that I'm still the man. And so he's come back in and...
reclaimed that and showing kind of the form he showed last season. His numbers are looking good. The eye test, he's certainly passing that as well. At some point, I think you maybe give Kent a break at some point because I feel like...
He hasn't played football much in the last two years. He really hasn't. And he's been a revelation. I think he's been very good. He's come in and been better than I thought right off the bat. But it can catch up to you. And sometimes you need to just get taken out of the lineup and then maybe come in as a sub again. You know, when the opponent's a bit more tired, the way he plays, nobody wants to see Kent coming on if you're right back or left back. But I don't know, but I think he may be...
one off the bench. You have De La Vega there. You have Ruffer who can play on the wings in this game. Maybe you go with that combination and then you bring on Georgie and Ryan Kent. But you have options. But in any case, I think it's a game you're looking at three points. You want to knock Minnesota off a bit. You want to send a message for sure this week and then the Vancouver game after that. You want to look at that and be like, if we can...
Windy's were on a very good run we were lost to LAFC but before that there was like a five game or so four or five game unbeaten run lost to LAFC and now we're starting a new run And you might be able to get to five, six games again as you go into the FIFA Club World Cup, which is on the horizon. And the buzz for that is happening. The trophy is here. I didn't get to see it. Schmidt said it's a big, beautiful trophy. He did say that.
I didn't get a chance to see it yet, but it's here. It's on site. So this is getting more real. So it's an exciting time, I think, to be a Sounders fan, but we're locked in to Sunday. So that's my preview. of this upcoming game I would say these keys will be important I think number one
You know, as much as football is tactics and the game has evolved so much, even from when I played, which seems just like yesterday, it's changed so much. There's such an emphasis on the tactics and the formation. And listen. It comes down to winning your 1v1 battles. Can our two midfielders be better than their two midfielders? Can Christian and Obed win that battle? Can your left midfielder be better than their right back? Can your right midfielder be better than their left back?
Can your centre-backs win the battle against their striker or strikers? Win enough match-ups all over the pitch. There's 11 players on the pitch. If seven or eight of your guys are better than them on the day, they win three to four battles, you probably win the game.
Probably. Usually. Not always, but usually. So you focus on winning your battles. I went into the game. I would know the tactics Ziggy gave. By the end of the day, what he's asking Alonso to do or Montero to do or Brad Evans to do, they have to do it. I can't do it for them.
What he's asking Steve's like, what I need to do is, hey, you need to give that right back hell. Like you have to get on the ball. You need to drive. You got to get a few crosses into the box and you need to defend it. Whatever he's asking me to do, I have to do it.
And then if Ozzy does what he's supposed to do, if Montero does what he's supposed to do, we're going to probably win the game. And that's the same mindset the guys in the 2025 team are taking to the game as well. If Albert dominates the holding midfielder for the opponent, moves him around the pitch.
Doesn't even get close. Gets on the ball. Makes things happen. Then he's spreading the ball out wide to Dele Vega, Rothrock and Kent and Georgie. And they're winning their 1v1 battles. And then Musovski and Ferreira getting into the box and giving the centre-backs nightmares from the opposition.
you likely can win the game so that's usually the key usually not always but usually the key so that's what I'm looking for this week is just how many of these key battles all over the pitch can you win if you win enough of them I think you end up with a good three points, which is now nine points in a week and sets you up well for the Vancouver game.
And then as you head into the FIFA Club World Cup and guys are getting healthy, the depth is there as we spoke about, I think we're in a good, good position. So I feel good about the game. Hopefully you are there cheering nice and loud. But if you are not...
Here is your broadcast information to cheer the boys on. Broadcast information, Apple TV Plus and MLS Season Pass. So you do not need to have MLS Season Pass if you do have Apple TV. You have access to the game. Taylor Twellman and Jake Zivin on the call for this one. or Apple TV, but for our local radio, we are on 93.3 KGR FM, and Danny Jackson, Steve Zakwani, and Michelle Ludka will be on the call, so make sure to tune in to them. They're our favorite local voices, and we love them so much.
1560 El Rey, of course. I'm excited for this one. I'm excited. So you have the information there. Tune in. Cheer on the boys. I think it's going to be a great one. I think we need your voices. And I was not at the game in midweek. I watched on TV, but...
it really took me back because i was watching on tv i could hear the crowd coming through the tv i had a volume loud i was there and i'm like this is this is a special place to play still i think people shouldn't forget that and when you're there in voice cheering it's fantastic and if you can't be there then obviously at home
your couch, driving in your car, listening on the radio. All of it matters. I know the Seahawks take this, but we use it too, the 12th man. It really is like an extra play on the pitch. So make sure you play your part as well. The team is looking good. There's a lot to be excited about.
No, I'll say this, Keely. I'll say this, yeah? Yeah. I think something, and I hope I say this the right way. I think we said it before. And you're New England. I know you had a Patriots and all of that, so you can relate to this. I'm from California, though, so I'm not a native New Englander. I just want to put that out there. I was waiting for that. So...
Sometimes a team can be so good, you can get used to it and take it for granted. We've never really had bad years in Seattle. We've missed a playoff once in our MLS existence. We've missed a playoff once. And then the next year came right back and were in the playoffs. That's the bare minimum. We've won so many trophies from day one. Three back-to-back Open Cups, four finals, four Open Cups in five years, Champions League, the only...
MLS team to do it. Two MLS Cups, been to four finals. Like, support shield. It's pretty a full trophy cupboard. A team that's always competitive. always in the running, usually second, third or fourth in the Western Conference. And I still feel like, and this is the part I like, we want more.
that we still feel like we should be doing more. And that's the demands of playing in a market like Seattle where the fans aren't going to be satisfied. And I think that actually pushes the team on. That's why we don't miss the playoffs because we can't get complacent because there's some big teams in MLS.
who play in some of the big cities, who might be missing for five years in the playoffs. And then rebuilding mode. We've never gone into rebuilding mode despite losing key players every single year. Players who are franchise legends. retire, leave, get traded, whatever the case may be. And the train keeps rolling and it's happening again. So I give a lot of credit to the front office, the coaching staff, Schmetz and his staff, and to the players.
Because it's not easy, I know it from experience, to play under that kind of pressure where nothing but the best isn't good enough. And even sometimes that's not enough. But I love that. That's the kind of pressure you want to play under. So I say that to say...
Go out there on the weekend and keep bringing the noise. Keep bringing the support because when you do that, it pushes this team on and we love playing under that kind of pressure and sometimes it even intimidates the opponent. So that's all we have time for this week. We'll be back next week. And I think it is Vancouver. I keep saying Vancouver. Yes, it's Vancouver. Vancouver on June 8th.
Yeah, I was hoping I was right. The first place Vancouver Whitecaps. That's going to be a great game as well. It'll be a great game. So it's always nice going up there. But again, before that, hopefully you pick up three points on the weekend. As always, this has been the Sounders FC Podcast. Comment, like, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Spread the word. We'll be back next week.
sorry and we'll be expanding we're gonna start doing video guys excited for video we're gonna be streaming it it's gonna be really really cool we're gonna you know after we get through club world cup and we get through this really crazy summer look out for it in july gonna push yeah And the idea is just to bring you really like from behind, behind the scenes, behind the lines from the clubhouse, exclusive content, more interviews with players, front office staff, technical staff.
um just really ramping up sort of our engagement here um via the podcast the video part will be very good i'm happy about it but i have to dress up a bit more because i'm always on casual first day casual friday but i'm a little bit more but you know
But no, so look out for that. We definitely have you in mind with everything we're doing here because we appreciate all the support over the years and especially this season as we need it. And so we'll be doing our best to continue to ramp up and give our best of the content. So we are back next week. Looking forward to it.
Throughout the season, Change Champions will share stories of neighborhood impact. Together, Boeing and Seattle Sounders FC will help shine a light on local organizations that strengthen the communities where our employees and fans live and work.
You know, I want to get started with pretty much the basics here so for everyone all of our listeners um fans that are tuned in who take an interest in this um you can just start by telling us your name and then how long you've been personally involved with um foundation for tacoma students Sure, sure. My name is Elvin Buku. I have been involved with the Foundation for Tacoma Students for close to 10 years now, 2015.
But I started as a community partner. So my background is in youth development. I was with the Boys and Girls Clubs for close to 20 years. That's actually how I got connected with Foundation for Tacoma Students. So it was more about a collaborative partnership at that time. But I did come on staff in 2019. So I've been a staff member with the foundation for about six years or so.
I think just by looking at the name, we can kind of guess who you want to serve and kind of the work you're doing. But could you kind of get a bit more specific and maybe in detail tell us a little bit about the mission? What actually is the foundation for Tacoma students? your mission and objectives yeah i'll start with the mission so mission is to build and strengthen uh tacoma's community-wide movement to help every child achieve success from cradle to college and career that's uh
That's the formality of it. But yeah, you can tell in our title. So we're all about students. And from the jump, really around 2010, we were only focused on Tacoma. So Tacoma Public Schools is third largest school district in the state. Um,
Graduation rates also was a primary focus at the time. And as we've grown over the last decade plus, we've kind of expanded to think more about Pierce County at this point. So while we have Tacoma in our name, we actually partnered with four different school districts. districts in Pierce County, still with the same mission though. We talk about cradle to career, so we are really thinking about our youngest citizens all the way up to
folks who are looking for a job and gaining good earning wages. So at this point, that broad swath, cradle to career, that's still our mission. But yeah, we're expanding past Tacoma, at least at this point.
Evan, that's fantastic. And I like the way you phrased that with the cradle to career part. And that kind of leads me to my next question because, you know, all of us are born into different situations, different circumstances. You know, I was born pretty much in a low income area and I grew up in that situation. So I...
I'm someone who took advantage of lots of after-school programs, programs, and other kids might not need it as much. So how do you sort of, how do you get, what's sort of your commitment to equity? Yeah, yeah. Every kid gets what they do. specifically need. I mean, you said it, and that's the nail on the head right there. Equity is everything.
For us, it's our literal strategy when we think about the students that we're looking to serve. We start first, we look at data a lot. So we're not just guessing who those students who need it most are. So data can show us a lot of things. It can show us, you know.
What zip code are you living in? What access to food or how is kind of the basic needs areas? But then obviously we're an academic institution. So we also look at data when it comes to academic measures. So things like grades or tests. But that's actually, I'm just speaking selfishly now. Data tells us only one side of this story. There's the actual experiences and the stories of the families, the students, their parents, uncles and aunts, the people who support them.
Our organization is a connector, so we try to connect with the students directly or the actual people on the ground, people who have been working with these honestly sometimes generations of families trying to help them. Like you said, get what they need. So that could mean a lot of things with starting early learning. Is it access to a child care program that's close to the job so mom and dad don't have to drive a far distance?
um in kind of the elementary school years like i said i'm with boys and girls club do they have access to a safe place not only for educational programs but just with a parent adult somebody to to connect with them moving to kind of where we're focused now is this kind of post-secondary pathway space. So do students have access to financial aid if they want to go? Do students have access to a two-year, four-year institution? Or if that's not their path, if higher ed isn't the direction.
How can we connect them to the workforce, to a good earning wage job? It really ultimately is about the communities who need support the most, whatever that means. And then our organization just looks to connect the dots because there's a ton of incredible organizations in our community, Pierce County wide, that are doing great work and we just try to connect the dots.
yeah that's fantastic and and with that i want to project a bit forward so we're looking at here you know by about 2030 um about 70 percent of tacoma public school students are even thought they're gonna earn a degree a technical certificate
or gain a good earning wage employment opportunity and that's within six years of um high school graduation which i think is just tremendous um what do your efforts look like in that in the sense of what your targeted efforts look like and how you're kind of gauging which jobs well-paying how you position your students for those opportunities because we live in a very fast changing world and then additionally with that I guess what does success look like in sort of you maintaining that progress
Yeah, we call it our 2030 goal. This is kind of a even longer term goal than that, right? We have certain measures that we're trying to hit by 2030. But ultimately, this is the crux of what we're thinking about when we call like generational change.
will it take for one generation of students to flip the script right and then be able to buy a house in their community or grow like have a family in their own community so that's in essence what our 2030 goal really gets to and we don't do anything alone like i said we're all about partnerships and not just with school districts right these are our community-based organizations government
churches, whoever is in alignment with this goal. That's what we love to connect with. We love to convene. We do a lot of strategizing. also. So to the point of what our targeted efforts look like, we start first with what are the programs that are working already.
So we don't have to recreate the wheel. We're a small organization ourselves. We don't do a lot of direct service given our capacity. So it behooves us to be out in community and learn who has the relationships with the most vulnerable populations. And what can our organization do to support them? So I'll give you an example of one of these efforts. We call it campaign free aid. I mentioned financial aid. That's one of the largest barriers. It's not the only.
But it is one of the largest barriers for a student who wants to go to earn a degree or certificate. And if you haven't done it yourself, the financial aid process is incredibly complex, especially for... you know a first-gen student or an immigrant family or somebody who doesn't speak english there's there's all or just a family who doesn't know how to fill up a 20-page application you know i mean it's it's incredibly complex so we actually partner with
around 12 to 14 different community-based organizations throughout the county to provide them with kind of technical assistance on this application. So we do workshops throughout where the kids and families are. So is it a school? We'll be there. Is it a community center where kids can be? We'll be there. But all the same information, all the same type of technical systems and training materials to help them fill this thing out. And then we ship with them. We guide them until they're complete.
This is kind of a years long process. We call it campaign for a reason because it's also about you know getting awareness out there if folks want to do a certain thing there is information people organizations who are here to help you and we're slowly but surely increasing the percentage of students who are
completing this application and ideally that gets them to a place they want to go if it's a degree or two-year, four-year, wherever that is. But again, partnership is everything. We're not doing any of this alone. I can always tell when someone's passionate about what they do just by the way they talk about it. And that's emanating from you quite well. And so I want to ask for you, what's your favorite part about your role? For you personally, what do you enjoy the most?
What do I enjoy? The man is the people. So I moved into the Tacoma area around 2011 or so. So I've been here more than a decade watching Tony in my whole life. I have always been in this non-profit sector, right, like working with community, families, students, and the student experience is amazing, right? Like there's still kids, this makes me feel old, like...
I've seen them have kids or graduate, become doctors or buy whatever, what the life thing is. Again, I feel old, but it's the people who work alongside me. And again, these are our partners who every day in, day out, they're dedicating their lives to community, dedicating their lives to students and families. These are now my lifelong friends. I call them family. They've been to my wedding. You know what I mean?
The community and collaborative spirit in Tacoma specifically and throughout Pierce County as we kind of expand and experience this, it's like nothing I've experienced personally. And again, people are about it they you know we live in the communities that we try and serve and so these are our neighbors too right so it isn't um just a job for for the people that we work with and for our organization so it's also a
an honor right like it's a i'm holding i'm one of a few you know who get to do this work i also don't take that for a minute right like there could be hundreds, thousands of people who have the privilege of doing this work. I'm here. I'm going to do as much as I can do alongside my colleagues to help out as much as we can.
yeah no brilliant um that's fantastic and i want to end on this ask you this question i've been in the washington community for a long time and i think when i came you know joined the sounds organization as a player i've moved on to different roles
One thing that's always been consistent is just how community-focused the club is. And that extends to the fans as well. And we're going to have a lot of fans listening to this episode, becoming more aware of your work. For the ones who want to get involved, who want to support what you're doing, what are some tangible ways ways that people can listen to this, be like, hey, I want to get off the sideline and join the action. What can they do to get involved and support your work?
Yeah, thank you. I started the website, graduate-tacoma.org. There's a bunch of stuff on there. And honestly, we talk a little technical about our work in this academic space. But I'm speaking simplistically. Come down to the office, come set up a meeting with one of us. Our contact information is there. There are so many different ways. We're talking cradle to career, right? So are you interested in helping our youngest?
uh citizens right like do you want to help connect to child care opportunities we can connect you there are you interested in the after school space or elementary school classrooms what we can connect you there I just talked about kind of our post-secondary pathways. Are you an employer that are looking for good people? You know what I mean? Connect with us. We're just trying to facilitate community connection. And Sounders fans, I know I've been to a number of games. I played in the...
Seahawks drum line when it first started which has an intersection with the Sounders band at least early on this is again back in the day. But there are so many experiences in community that our students would love to be a part of, whether it be at a Sounders game or otherwise. But we'd be happy to host Sounders fans down here and connect the dots with them.
I love it. That's amazing. No, well, honestly, it's an honor for us to have you on here. I mean, we love highlighting great work being done by community leaders and we appreciate that. And I wish you much success in all the efforts you're doing and from us on behalf of myself. and the Sounders organization, a big thank you to you and the foundation. I appreciate it, Steve. Thank you so much.