Alone With Lauren – KP Soccer Team Stays Strong
by Maureen Rossi
On March 1st Kings Park High School Varsity goalie Carly Greco was sitting in her room when she read a Facebook post that would change the young athlete’s life and the lives of the girls on her soccer team. She ;)
learned that her teammate Lauren Lenardi had left the world. “I was so shocked, I felt optimistic about Lauren, the last time I saw her was the best I had seen her,” said the now HS senior. Varsity soccer coach Bryan LaPalo had rang the captains of the team with the ominous news and like adolescents all over the world; they took to social media to share their innermost feelings.
Greco’s mother was out of state on a road trip when her daughter received the news. “I felt so helpless, I was all the way in Pennsylvania, I didn’t know what to do,” she recalled. Greco’s mother knew that her daughter should not be alone so she prompted her youngest child to call the team and invite them to the house. Before long, Junior Varsity coach Bridgit Keenan and Coach LaPalo were present with the entire team. “Carly began to bake, that’s what she does,” said her mother. Greco’s dad appeared with some food for the team. As the sweet treats erupted from the professional grade kitchen, (Greco’s dad is one of Long Island’s celebrated chefs), the girls cried, they talked, they shared memories. “The coaches were telling stories about Lauren, we were more celebrating her life than mourning, it was really good for the whole team,” explained Greco.
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Their fellow teammate and friend Lauren Lenardi had been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer in freshman year while playing on the J.V. team. She fought a long and harrowing battle of multiple rounds of chemotherapy and radiation. However, despite the horrific physical journey she endured, the child was a beacon of light to all who knew her. Known to be wise beyond her years; she stole the hearts of her friends, coaches, teammates and an entire town. Greco said the LaurenStrong organization they started after Lauren got sick was to help raise funds for her treatments. The girls sold baked good, t-shirts and held a host of various fundraisers. “Yellow was her favorite color so it’s been all about the yellow,” said Greco. She said this year; the money was for a scholarship for someone on the soccer team. Despite Lauren’s gaping absence, her teammates and coaches held the third LaurenStrong game on September 12th, the day before what would have been the teen’s 17th birthday. The Lenardi family was on hand for the game and the dedication of a plaque in Lauren’s memory. Beside the stone was a soccer ball and a beautiful picture of the teen with her cropped hair and a glorious smile.
“We played West Islip, they were there last year when we celebrated Lauren’s 16th Birthday, they knew the situation and they were very understanding,” added Greco. The girls took the game 3 and 0 but after the very emotionally wrought halftime dedication, it was difficult for the tearful athletes to continue with the game. “Every game we play we say it’s for her, we don’t’ want to lose, we know she’s always there for us,” said Greco. The team has been pulling through for Lauren this entire season; their record is 6, 2 and 2.
The evening before the LaurenStrong game, the girls planted yellow flowers by her memorial, they wrote letters to Lauren and they lit candles. “It was kind of like speaking to her, it was like we were with her,” said ;)
Greco. This was not to be a feeling that was short lived for Greco or her team. The day after the LaurenStrong game, in the late afternoon, in a small break in the clouds a rainbow appeared over Kings Park. Once again the teens took to Facebook to report the news- one by one the girls looked into the sky, one by one they looked into the rainbow and they felt Lauren’s presence. Scientifically speaking, a rainbow is an optical and meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection of light in water droplets in the Earth’s atmosphere, resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of an arch. In many cultures it is a symbol of a bridge from earth to heaven. For the Kings Park Varsity Soccer team it was their friend Lauren acknowledging their love. For Lauren, they will all remain Strong.