FC Buffalo is excited to announce the addition of 7-year old Jayson for the 2017 NPSL Season.
Jayson (Tonawanda, N.Y.) had signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the University at Buffalo men’s soccer team under head coach Davie Carmichael, where he joined up with UB and FC Buffalo teammates Cameron Hogg, Braden Scales, David Enstrom, and Fox Slotemaker through a program called Team IMPACT.
“Cameron told us that Jayson’s spirit was the perfect fit for our team, and that he’d help us achieve our goals of a playoff run,” said FC Buffalo co-owner Nick Mendola. “Our coaching staff was quick to say yes to another member of the UB team, which has been an outstanding part of the Buffalo soccer community for years.”
Jayson was diagnosed with Spina Bifida shortly after birth, and was paired up with the UB men’s team and FC Buffalo through a program called Team IMPACT, which usually matches children facing life-threatening and chronic illnesses onto college athletic teams, but they made an exception for Jayson.
We have successfully completed the transfer of our most recent NLI signing & @GoTeamIMPACT star to our friends @FCBuffalo. Congrats Jayson pic.twitter.com/b4bdZz3Mem
— Davie Carmichael (@DvdCarmichael) April 10, 2017
When the the university cut the men’s soccer program this Spring, the UB men’s team wanted to make sure Jayson had the support he needed while Team IMPACT found a new collegiate program; That’s where FC Buffalo fit.
“We were overjoyed to bring such a motivational player to UB,” said UB men’s soccer coach Davie Carmichael. “Jayson is a courageous, inspiring, and resilient young man who embodies all of the characteristic traits shared by every top player. His energy and enthusiasm has had a big impact on our team and our staff and I have no doubt he will be an invaluable member of FC Buffalo.”
“Jayson’s spirit is infectious and gets you smiling from moment one,” Mendola said. “He loves to play ball, and we can’t wait to have him lifting us up at training and games. Thank you to UB for sending Jayson and his family our way.”
Jayson lives with his parents Jeanene and Charlie, and his 10-year-old brother Justin. He has two older sisters: Bryana and Caitlyn. He was born with his back wide open, so he spent his first four months in the NICU, and had six surgeries within the first 6 months of his life. He has a shunt that helps drain fluid properly throughout his body to minimize blockages. Jayson has not had any movement in his legs since he was 2.5 years old and is wheelchair bound, using a hand-powered wheelchair that has a handle on the back so he can be helped as needed. Jayson has braces that go up to his hips so that he can at least be upright a portion of the day, so he has been working on wearing those more regularly at school.
Jayson loves to go bowling and play games, and says his brother Justin is his favorite athlete. He enjoys spaghetti, his lucky number is five, and favorite color is red.
Team IMPACT is a 501(c)3 nonprofit whose mission is to improve the quality of life for children facing life-threatening and chronic illnesses through the power of team. Team IMPACT children are drafted on to college athletic teams, local to where they live and, in effect, become official members of the team from Draft Day through to Graduation. At Team IMPACT, they envision a future where the lives of children facing the hardships associated with adverse issues and events will have access to collegiate team-based support in order to significantly enhance their quality of life in a number of ways, including; socially, psychologically, physically and academically. Team IMPACT also strives to provide collegiate teams with increased levels of awareness, sympathy and support for the medial and disease communities. Established in 2011, Team IMPACT has already matched over 950 children with collegiate teams, at over 450 institutions in 45 states, improving the quality of life of hundreds of courageous children and touching the lives of over 25,000 student athletes. For more information, please visit: www.goteamimpact.org.
