It might sound weird to think about, but the best way to describe El Paso is if it were a person. Does that make sense? How would you describe that person? I would just say that it’s someone who is very nice. Probably multi-cultural. A good friend, and someone who looks out for others. Someone you could call if you ran out of gas, or needed help changing a tire, you know? Someone welcoming.

I think there are misconceptions about what growing up here is like. Everyone calls us a border town, and it is, but I’m not sure that everyone knows what that means. Memo knows this, but we have new teammates join us all the time – guys who aren’t from here – and they see the border and they see Juarez and it’s really exciting for them. But if you’re from here, it’s just normal.

I spent the first 15 years of my life in the Borderplex. I have family who live on both sides. Family in Juarez. Family in El Paso. Growing up, I’d have dinner with Grandpa in El Paso one night and then head over to see family in Juarez the next morning. It’s that coming together of cultures that makes this place special. I think maybe at some point in my life I took that for granted, but now I realize that growing up here removed certain stigmas. It taught me to see everyone here the same.

It’s also crazy how much people love soccer here. You know what’s cool now is that there are places you can stand near the border – on either side – where you can see the lights from the stadium where FC Juarez play and where we play. That’s cool. Two professional soccer teams within eyesight. I wish we had that when I was growing up here.

That first game was crazy. To see the fans. They’re the best in the league, no doubt. No other stadium gets this rowdy. These people are fanatics.

I first heard about the shooting while I was at breakfast with friends. Our phones all started blowing up with notifications. I couldn’t believe it.

You hear about things like this, but you never think it’s going to happen near you. It breaks my heart. El Paso is a big family. We respect each other, love each other, and are welcoming to newcomers. It’s unfathomable. It’s not representative of who we are as a community.

Our soccer club is representative of our community. Diversity is our biggest strength. We learn from each other. We’re tolerant. We’re respectful. We may view life differently, but we do it together.

And right now, our focus is on helping our community heal. This is an important time for all of us.

El Paso Strong.