Local soccer teams to raise funds for family of Lourdes student killed in Keys boat crash
The tributes and support for the families of Our Lady of Lourdes Academy student Lucy Fernandez and soccer standout Katy Puig, both victims of a tragic boating accident in the Florida Keys this past September, have continued in recent months.
On Friday night, the Miami Columbus and Miami Westminster Christian boys’ soccer teams will offer their support by turning their regular season match into an event dedicated to honor the memory of Fernandez, who was killed in the accident and Puig, who continues to recover from serious injuries at a rehab facility in Jacksonville.
The game will be the latest to support the families of both Puig and Fernandez. Lourdes recently played Miami Carrollton at the University of Miami in a game dedicated to both as the Bobcats have dedicated their season to them, setting up numerous tributes and documenting their season so Puig can watch every moment she couldn’t attend when she is well enough.
“We have a lot of players who were very close to both families affected in the accident,” Columbus soccer coach Kameron Clark said. “The boys from both teams got together and we felt like we needed to do something to help.”
The connections between both schools run deep as Westminster Christian coach Josh Kirk coached Clark during his playing days at Columbus in 2006-07. Kirk has also coached multiple players on the Explorers’ roster at the club level.
Clark said this made it easy to agree to make the game between the two teams the perfect time and place to host such an event.
The teams will play at 7 p.m. at Columbus with all of the proceeds from the game to be donated to the Lucy Fernandez Foundation, Inc., which was established on a GoFundme shortly after her tragic death. The foundation was set up to create scholarships at Our Lady of Lourdes Academy. It has since raised over $630,000.
A separate GoFundMe was set up to raise funds for Puig’s family to help pay for medical bills during her prolonged recovery. It has since raised nearly $600,000.
“It’s going to be an emotional game, but it’s something we felt we needed to do,” Clark said.
This story was originally published December 15, 2022 at 8:00 AM.
