Rashawn Dally learned how to play soccer in Bloomfield and after years of hard work, he went to play at Quinnipiac University and eventually professionally in the USL. Now the 24-year-old wants to help young players by sharing his knowledge and experience.
He founded RULLA Sports Empowerment and is hosting the inaugural Kick it with the Pros soccer camp. About 50 kids were in attendance at Sportsworld in East Windsor for the first day and they got the chance to work six professional players and four coaches.
"There were a couple of things that I really wanted to hit and that was to be a source of inspiration, a source of wisdom and high level soccer training," said Dally, who plays for Memphis 901 in the USL.
"To see people from my hometown, my own area, my own state go that far just shows that I can do it and anybody here can do it," said Newington senior Michael Padilla.
Get Connecticut local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Connecticut newsletters.
"You know, this community, it gave me a dream and gave me opportunities, the right people in my life to help me get to where I got to and I just want to give that back as much as possible to the next generation," said Dally. "Jamiaca is my roots but Connecticut is home for me. I grew up on the same very field that we're playing on in the winter time, me and my time used to come here whether it was pick up or competitive games."
Dally hopes to continue the camp in future years and continue to find different ways to help and inspire young soccer players in the area.
