GRAVES COUNTY, KY — As hundreds work to recover from the quad-state tornado outbreak of Dec. 10-11, a place known as the Soccer Factory in Mayfield is getting a lot of attention from the sports world and beyond.
Local 6 went to Graves County Thursday to meet the coach known as “Chili.”
Nothing more remains of the Soccer Factory but the foundation of the indoor field, some battered sports equipment and a lot of hope.
Luis Pardo, known to most as Chili, came to Mayfield 20 years ago to play soccer for Mid-Continent University.
He started a family and several businesses, and just over a year ago saw his dream of creating an indoor/outdoor soccer complex become a reality.
It became a place for the community and families to connect over their love of soccer, until the tornado almost three weeks ago blew it away.
He not only lost the field, but also his lot — Chili Motors.
After the storm, the kids actually came out to help him begin the cleanup. Now, they are relying on teamwork to help Coach Chili rebuild.
“I wanted to bring all the kids here because they wanted to come help, and I wanted them to look at it and see that our goal to rebuild soccer factory that this was not the end of it,” Pardo said.
After they cleaned up the field, Pardo said the kids started up a game with a soccer ball they salvaged from the storm on the concrete slab that used to be their field.
Tune into Local 6 at Six Thursday night to hear from the families supporting the effort to rebuild the Soccer Factory.
And, if you want to help, click here to see their GoFundMe campaign.
