There were many worthy entries, but the winner of the Wells Fargo’s Community MVP Award from Real Salt Lake is Michael Huaraca. A native of Peru, Huaraca was chosen for his dedication and passion for coaching soccer. As the MVP, Michael will be going to the 2015 AT&T MLS All-Star game in Denver, Colorado, on July 29, representing RSL. You can now vote for Michael to win the $10,000 Grand Prize by clicking here. Voting ends July 29.
Huaraca grew up playing soccer in his native Peru and excelled to the equivalent of a college level there before moving to the United States. For the past three years he has been the coach and manager of the Blue Eagles Soccer Team in the UYSA in Salt Lake City.
The West Valley City-based team is primarily of Latino descent and very much on the poor side. Huaraca pays for what the parents can’t and asks for donations from local businesses to cover the rest. This is a labor of love from a man that truly thinks the game of soccer should be fun and enjoyable. His boys listen and learn and you can tell they too have fun playing.
Because of Michael’s passion for the game, his humble beginnings, and good-hearted nature, he invests a lot of time and energy in teaching, training, and nurturing these young boys to succeed—even if they don’t win every game.
