Kari Wildman

I was born in Ecuador. I was adopted at age two to a family in Warsaw, Indiana. I have two older brothers and grew up around a lot of neighborhood boys. They were always playing soccer. I would just jump in and play with them. Girls didn’t play soccer when I was younger, so I would always be on an all-boys team. I’ve been playing since I was five years old.

Soccer has definitely been a big part of my life. Now I’m coaching here at Goshen High School, I’m in my tenth year on the staff. I’m the varsity assistant coach for the girls. I’m passionate about giving back. All the time that all my coaches gave to me –– now I’m giving it back to the girls.

I definitely feel that teaching has been and will always be my calling. Well, my dream job would an ESPN commentator, but that’s beside the point. As a teacher, I make sure I’m making a connection with the kids and getting to know them beyond my lesson –– being a mentor and a positive person in that student’s life.

I just love the diversity here in Goshen. I was one of the few Latina girls on my high school team. It didn’t really bother me –– I was just there to play soccer with my friends. But coming to Goshen and seeing the diversity, man, what a blessing it is to be immersed in all those backgrounds and cultures. They even have the flags hanging up in the cafeteria for each country that’s represented in Goshen High School. I think it’s fabulous. It’s just great to learn about these different backgrounds and hear where kids are from. I can tell it makes a difference, it shows them we care about their background. I think being exposed to all these different backgrounds and ethnicities prepares them for the workplace. Our world is just diverse, and you have to understand where people are coming from. You have to have that courage to get to know other people.