A Real Soccer Mom

Life’s journey is never a straight line; it is always filled with twists and turns and surprises along the way. Erin Muir could emphatically agree. Jim Mandelaro in the D&C detailed her bumpy ride from pregnant teen to soccer-playing mom at the University of Massachusetts. Erin had dreamed of landing an athletic scholarship to a Division I college. Her ability as a forward midfielder at Spencerport High School had not gone unnoticed by Olympic development soccer officials. By her junior year, her dream seemed assured.

But that same year Erin met 23 yr. old Shawn at a local gym. Their relationship became more serious and at age 16 and a junior in high school Erin learned that she was pregnant. "I think I got sick and just cried, " she said. " There was a feeling of panic, but also of getting information and figuring out what I could do." She knew she had to tell her parents and that they would be devastated. As her father, Larry, said, she had been "on the fast track." Her mother, Linda, couldn’t see herself as ever happy again. So obviously their relationship was strained.

Adoption was discussed and that seemed to be the plan. "We actually had a family picked out and everything." Erin said. Then her baby was born and everything changed. "I knew in the back of my head I wasn’t going to put her up. I just wanted my parents to know I was looking at every option." McKennzie Lynne was born on June 29, 1998. The family and Erin felt immediate love for this baby.

Erin says, "Nowadays I think it happens to so many people but you don’t hear about it because of abortions. I think people were shocked, but I got a lot of respect for going to school and keeping the baby." Finally, she just had to follow her conscience.

Muir played soccer that fall at Spencerport in her senior year, and at Monroe Community College for two years earning All-America honors her second year. She took to her new role as mom making McKennzie her priority. MCC coach, Tracey Britton, was most impressed with her dedication to her daughter. Soccer was clearly not the most important thing in her life, in spite of the opportunities that were being offered. She told Britton one day, "Don’t they understand? It’s not about me anymore. It’s about McKennzie."

Her intimate relationship with Shawn had ended, and, so it seemed, would her soccer career. Erin spent last year working as a receptionist at a local hair salon while completing her associate’s degree. And while it looked like her dream of playing Division I soccer had ended, in truth, she hung onto that dream. She talked with Syracuse coach, April Kater, about playing for Syracuse, but that didn’t work. Then over the summer an opening occurred when UMass star Stephanie Santos was killed in a car accident. And Kater recommended Muir to coach, Jim Rudy. Rudy offered her a full scholarship and she accepted.

Erin’s family and Shawn’s have been supportive in enabling her to take advantage of this opportunity. Erin and Shawn agree on sharing the responsibility of raising McKennzie. Shawn takes care of her during the week and Erin’s parents bring her to New England for weekends. McKennzie, it seems, has won the hearts of the UMass players and coaches. Coach Rudy sums it up well, "It’s fun having McKennzie around, and it’s been sort of therapeutic as well. All those things that we lost when Stephanie died, we got them back with McKennzie."

Erin has traveled a long and difficult road to get to where she is today. She says, "I am beyond fortunate. A year ago, I would have never thought this was possible."

Oh yes, those twists and turns of life. You never know where they will lead you.

Source of information is an article by Jim Mandelaro in the Democrat & Chronicle, Rochester, NY, 11/8/2002)