Alumni Stories

There are a lot of character traits that I learned while playing with Strikers.Perseverance, drive and passion are all attributes that were reinforced back then, but have been important to me years later, as well.

At Augustana I played soccer my freshman year, but left after that to focus on grades. Before I could graduate college, however, I had a severe brain injury and was on life support for a long time. No one knew if I was ever going to be functional again. I pushed every day to regain the ability to walk, talk, read and write. If I did not have the skills I learned from Strikers, I might have quit.

Now, I’m doing very well! I work as a recruiter for Aerotek, and recently I’ve been accepted to Aurora University for their Masters in Social Work program, with a focus on addictions. I am excited to be starting this journey in May 2024.

The everlasting friendships I still have today have been vital to staying active after recovering from my injury. Playing in soccer leagues with my old teammates fromStrikers and college has brought a lot of joy. I also love to play golf as much as possible when the weather permits. Overall, I am blessed to still be able to function on my own after the injury, and am very excited to pursue my master’s degree in something that will be very fulfilling for me.

My years at Strikers were once-in-a-lifetime experiences. If I could go back and relive them, I totally would. My coaches taught me there is a time to get down to business, but there is also a time to have fun. And through it all, that lesson still sticks with me to this day.

– Trevor Hockings