COLUMBUS — The inaugural Kirk Urso Memorial Match against the University of North Carolina on February 24, 2013 raised nearly $30,000 for the Crew Soccer Foundation’s Kirk Urso Memorial Fund. The proceeds from the match – generated from ticket sales, donations, merchandise sales, raffle and auction items – brings the Fund a third of the way closer to its 2013 goal of raising $100,000 toward funding a congenital heart defect research grant through the Children’s Heart Foundation.
The Urso Fund was launched in late 2012 to support heart health research and programming in memory of the Crew midfielder who passed away at the age of 22 from a congenital heart defect last August.
The Crew will offer several Kirk Urso items available for purchase at all 2013 Crew home matches, including Urso wristbands, #15 pins and t-shirts with the proceeds benefiting the Kirk Urso Memorial Fund. In addition to those items, any jersey that is personalized with Urso’s name and number will have a portion of the proceeds from the personalization going to the Kirk Urso Memorial Fund.
Urso was originally selected by the Crew in the first round (No.10 overall) in the 2012 Supplemental Draft, and appeared in six games (five starts) with one assist last season before being sidelined by injury. He was a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he made four consecutive NCAA Men’s College Cup Final Four appearances and captained the team to the 2011 NCAA National Championship. Urso was admired for his unwavering work ethic and steadfast character both on and off the field. The inaugural match featured the Crew against Urso’s college alma mater and was held at the UNC Greensboro Soccer Stadium on Sunday, February 24, 2013 against UNC.
ABOUT THE CREW SOCCER FOUNDATION
Founded in 2003 as the charitable arm of Major League Soccer’s Columbus Crew, the Crew Soccer Foundation utilizes soccer as a vehicle to serve at-risk youth through education, field development and healthy lifestyles. The Crew Soccer Foundation’s core areas of philanthropic focus are literacy and scholarships; soccer field creation, refurbishment and programming in underserved communities; and, heart disease risk and prevention, concussion awareness and childhood obesity.
