For Special Olympics Buncombe County athlete Paige Soderman, her lifelong dream is to “play soccer with Alex Morgan.” At the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games in Orlando, Florida, hosted June 5-12, she got one step closer to scoring that dream.
“My most favorite sport is soccer, because it is my dream sport,” said Soderman. “I really want to be a professional soccer player when I grow up, like Alex Morgan… I love Alex Morgan because she helps me not to give up on my dreams.”
In the middle of Team Special Olympics North Carolina’s final soccer match against Special Olympics Pennsylvania, Soderman received a visit from ESPN reporter, two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist Julie Foudy. On camera, Foudy played a video message from Morgan herself, wishing Soderman luck in achieving her dreams on the field and expressing her wishes of playing soccer together one day. Soderman and her team won a silver medal following that game.
Much like Morgan, Soderman serves as a leader, a source of inspiration, for others. As a Global Messenger, she is a trained spokesperson for Special Olympics, helping to recruit potential athletes, volunteers and sponsors through public presentations. Also trained as a Health Messenger, she serves as a health and wellness leader, educator, advocate and role model within her Special Olympics community.
“She served as the athlete lead for the Special Olympics USA Games Fitness Challenge,” said Special Olympics North Carolina Health Director Melissa Monroe. “Her primary goals in that role were to share health tips with her teammates weekly and encourage them to participate in the challenge. She shared her passion for hydration with her teammates during USA Games by encouraging them to drink water and reminding them of the health benefits.”
“Being a Health Messenger to me means that you can eat healthier foods, like salads, fruits, veggies and water,” explained Soderman. “The important thing for being healthy is drinking water every day… It’s a good thing to talk to the other athletes about being healthy, tell them how to stay fit and everything.”
The Health Messenger program was established to empower athletes to: develop healthy lifestyles; influence other athletes to lead healthier lives; advocate within their communities for inclusion around health and wellness services, education and resources; and develop leaders to advocate for the health needs of people with intellectual disabilities. In the nearly 20 years that Soderman has been training and competing with Special Olympics, she has never ceased in giving back.
“I am volunteering at Asheville Middle School,” said Soderman. “I am helping teach people with special needs, helping them with sign language. I took two sign language classes, one in college and another I did when I was young.”
Soderman has taken classes at Asheville-Buncombe Technical College and graduated from Western Carolina University in 2017. She works as a baker’s assistant at Bruegger’s Bagels in Asheville, North Carolina. Returning from Orlando, she will continue working, volunteering, advocating and training in what she loves best, soccer.
“Special Olympics means to me that I love to compete against other teams, but I love to socialize with my friends,” said Soderman. “I love the competition and love meeting new people.”
One of these days, Soderman plans to meet Morgan. Until then, she’s leading others to follow in their dreams and prioritize their health along the way.
