Something to Feel Good About
There hasn’t been much to feel good about in the world for some time now. If it’s not this god forsaken pandemic, it’s our country’s continuing inability to address issues of racism or alter our toxic political environment.
You go on any social platform and more often than not, the negativity drowns out anything to feel good about. Liverpool has more often than not been the exception to that rule since 2018 and for us, being around each other has long been a refuge from the winds of disgrace that blow strong through our time.
This week, there has been something to feel good about. Something different. Something worth noting. Our partnership with Everton Tampa has been a rare bright spot that is the first step in launching more efforts to have a greater impact on our community right here in Tampa Bay. We set out to raise 100 pounds of food for Metropolitan Ministries, and at the time of writing, on the eve of the match and in-person donations, we have already hit 168 pounds and are hoping to double the initial goal.
In a state where one in five people have to choose each day between buying gas to use a car (a necessity in a community with such poor public transport and massive geographic footprints) or buy food, meeting this goal can help ease a fair amount of stress. For struggling families or seniors on a fixed income, these donations prove to be massive for health and happiness.
Elsewhere, OLSC NY has raised more than $5k for Fans Supporting Food Banks, making a difference in the Liverpool community that provides so much fuel for the identities of Liverpool and Everton supporters around the world.
Rivals we may be on the pitch, but off it, Reds and Blues have so often been brothers, cousins, friends, colleagues and even spouses. They’re neither enemies nor rivals in a crisis and it pleases me to see fans working together to take care of each other, to take care of common people whether it’s here or there.
In a time where the world has been sold off to billionaires piece by piece, leaving regular folk with so little while the rich have everything, we find that we need to stick together more than ever.
For years, there was no Everton group to work with. There was no blue half of Tampa Bay. As much as we want to win what we like to call the “ideological war” for soccer supporters in this area, you can’t win without an opposite and it’s nice to have someone to work with who wants to do these things, someone who’s as excited about their future as we are about ours.
I don’t expect you to abandon your usual venue to join us over at Bay Cannon Brewery tomorrow, I barely expect you to wake up. But if you can’t join and bring a physical donation, do us a solid and contribute at the link below, we’d much appreciate it.
If you can’t give, I ask to consider joining us tomorrow for a rare occasion that hopefully won’t be so rare going forward. We’d like to make this partnership with the Tampa Toffees a regular thing, with each of us hosting the other at least once a season. It’s an opportunity to do something good in our area and to have a bit of friendly banter with a rival. It’s a chance to expand our connections and our presence in the broader football culture of Tampa Bay, and to make doing that into something positive.
A little part of me hopes you’ll consider joining us in defiance of those who have all the money and power to do good things, but simply don’t. But most of all I hope that you’ll help us show what this community is all about. See you tomorrow.
