Updated: Jun 12, 2019
Celebrating moments as a community is priceless. There is nothing quite like coming together for a common goal as this is the very backbone of any organization, team, and of course, a society. In fact, not only is it our mission at Hudson Sports Complex to provide top-class training, playing facilities, & to continuously provide opportunities for sporting triumphs, but we are here to act as a pillar for the Warwick community and beyond. The first step in this journey, host a Grand Opening event for all attendees & community members to enjoy!
In effect, we wanted to make our own Grand Opening a special day for all of those involved; a day that will be forever cherished. A top priority: partner with a local organization that prides itself on positive values & making an impact on the greater community…and boy did we find a wonderful charity in ‘Beautiful People’. In case you don’t know about this amazing organization, Beautiful People is a non-profit based in Warwick, NY that provides inspiration, hope, and opportunities for children with special needs to participate in sports. Their adaptive sports programs allow children to take part in activities they love while building self-esteem, coordination, and ultimately, Beautiful People helps fulfill dreams that otherwise would not be possible. To learn more about and to make donations towards this outstanding group, visit their website here.
Once we finalized our main goal of partnering with a wonderful organization, we were then tasked with creating an exciting event so everyone could benefit from a fun-filled day. We had talented youth players go head to head early in the day, NYCFC activation centers, and we even had a soccer tennis field setup. Ultimately, we were blessed to have many local vendors, drink & food trucks, inflatables, a face painter, a DJ, and much more to help provide entertainment as well as activities for kids and parents alike.
The biggest attraction though, our Founder & VP, Christian Fuchs, was able to round up many of his colleagues and professional soccer player friends from near & far to participate in our All-Star Charity Match! Prior to the game, all patrons had the opportunity to take pictures with & get autographs from the pros! There was also a very emotional ceremony as Christian and his Leicester City FC (LCFC) compatriots made a touching speech and field dedication to the late LCFC owner, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha.
As an added bonus, we had dozens of items for people to bid on where all proceeds went to Beautiful People. Our auction pieces included a Lionel Messi signed soccer ball, Mo Salah signed jersey, and an all paid for trip to England to see a Premier League match among many more! Also, everyone in attendance had the chance to see 5x Freestyle World Champion, Andrew Henderson, put on a show on top of our roof of all places! All in all, we had current & former Premier League players such as Wes Morgan, Danny Simpson, Robert Huth, Emile Heskey, Jamie Redknapp, and more to take part in the charity game & to help raise money for Beautiful People.
At the end of the day, we are extremely proud and thankful to everyone involved that helped make this day possible because it was a total community effort. We owe an enormous amount of gratitude to all the volunteers, vendors, food trucks, sponsors, partners, and more! Thank you to all who made it out to our Grand Opening & especially those who made donations to Beautiful People. We hope to see you all again very soon as we have many programs planned for the summer like our upcoming Youth Soccer Tournaments and Summer Soccer Camps!
