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| Jaime French |
In the past several months, usage the word resilient has skyrocketed. The over-usage has led to a dilution of the word's meaning and now we no longer have a concrete sense of the word.
But we do.
In late June 2013, The Kansas City Star published a profile on Jaime French who had just played her first professional game for the first-year club FC Kansas City during the inaugural season of the National Women's Soccer League.
Normally, papers profile an athlete after a memorable performance, but in Jaime's case, it was her circumstances and resilience that inspired the article.
She played her first professional game in her hometown of Chicago in front of childhood friends, a high school mentor and a college soccer coach. The only thing missing? Her husband, who had perished in a car accident three months earlier.
Josh French lost control of his car and hit a guard rail while talking with his parents on speakerphone. He would be pronounced dead at the scene in what the Missouri Highway Patrol deemed a weather-related accident. Josh and Jaime had been married only nine months.
Just a week before Josh's death, Jaime had been one of three players selected from an open tryout to become a member of FC Kansas City's inaugural team.
Jaime attended Wheaton College in Illinois where she played all four years, finishing her career with 48 goals and 31 assists. Her 127 career points rank sixth in school history.
Jaime started Wheaton's first 21 games until a torn ACL ended her freshman season. Josh was Wheaton's student athletic trainer and instantly fell in love with her while helping her rehab.
She would play another 21 games her sophomore season before exploding her junior year, starting all 24 games and doubling her scoring proficiency to earn a Capital One Academic All-American distinction.
Expectations increased for her senior year and she met them all to be named NSCAA Division II National Player of the Year, First Team All-American and First Team All-Region. She started all 27 games, registering 15 goals and 16 assists.
Before Josh's death, Jaime was granted an amateur contract with FC Kansas City, meaning she wouldn't be paid. That didn't matter as Josh insisted on quitting his job and permanently moving to KC to support his wife's soccer career.
After Josh's death, Jaime left KC unsure whether she wanted to live there on her own, but a picture on Facebook persuaded her to return. On Josh's Facebook profile page was a picture of the FC Kansas City Logo advertising training camp.
Jaime returned and learned FC Kansas City saved her a reserve spot. She trained daily and would be the first among reserve played to receive playing time. The team's general manager, coach and her teammates all praise her dedication, strength and work ethic.
On July 31st, 2013, French was signed by FC Kansas City to a contract that runs through season's end. The signing meant she would be moved from her reserve role to a full-time roster spot.
Following the signing, The Kansas City Star quoted French as saying, "I'm really excited to sign my first contract and have the opportunity to be a part of the team for the last month of the season and the playoffs. It's really gratifying to have all your hard work pay off, and this is an amazing reward.
FC Kansas City finished its inaugural season with a 11-6-5 record, good for second-best in the League, and a berth in the playoffs. However, the team would ultimately lose in the Semi-Finals. According to the team's statistics page, Jaime only appeared in one game for 11 minutes. But based on what her teammates and coaches say, Jaime's contribution off the field and in practice outweigh her performance on the field.
As of February 3rd, French remains on the roster as training camp starts. For FC Kansas City's 2014 schedule and a chance to see French in action, assuming all continues to go well, click here.
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