“It’s not soccer. We’re in the business of fostering kids.”

Ever since he was 4 years old Kempy has been infatuated with soccer. Kempy was born in Jamaica, and, as was custom there, began playing soccer at a young age. He dreamed of becoming a professional player and worked day and night to make that dream a reality for much of his childhood. For a while, it seemed his dream might come true, at the age of 17 he received a scholarship to play Division I soccer at the University of Maryland. Unfortunately, following an injury Kempy's contract to play was terminated and he had to cancel his plans with the university Still, Kempy could not imagine a world in which he would be happy where soccer was not a part of his job. He attended the University of Technology in Jamaica for two years, where he, surprisingly, worked to get a chemistry degree while playing on the school soccer team. After college Kempy went pro to play with August Town Football Club in the KSAFA Major League. After college and his brief soccer career, Kempy moved to New York City in search of opportunities, specifically soccer-related ones.

Kempy met Nate Bell a number of years ago at the Parade Grounds in Brooklyn during a pickup soccer game. At the time Kempy had no job, but Nate told him about a vision: a soccer club based in the Park Slope area based around founding an early interest in soccer in young kids. The club was not going to be focused on the competitive, numerical side of soccer: i.e. how many college players they could get or how many championship wins, it was going to be a place where young players could have fun and find a community. Most importantly, Nate wanted to create an environment where kids could learn not only how to play soccer, but also how to be a good person. Kempy was excited by the idea of running his own team and believed in Nate’s vision. Starting with a group of just seven kids (including me) Kempy and Nate worked together to grow the club, having no idea how big it would eventually become.

Unexpectedly, PSU has become Kempy’s full-time job. The club slowly expanded over the course of the next 10 years, as the more kids joined, the more people the parents of those kids would tell about the club. Kempy now spends his mornings in meetings, afternoons in individual check-ins, and then coaching in the evenings, taxing work, but he loves it. Even the conversations with parents, which might sound boring or tiring, are fun for him since they’re about soccer and building community, which he could never get sick of.

Through his experiences as a coach, Kempy has been surprised to learn how different every single person is, in both the ways they are raised and their innate nature.

Kempy has now been coaching for just over 10 years and had a good time recalling his most memorable moments as a coach. Kempy remembered a crazy half-field shot from my teammate Malachi over 8 years ago which sent the whole bench wild. Kempy feels that moment in particular propelled the energy of the club. More recently though, Kempy feels particularly proud of his current team, Milan, which is one of the best teams of their age group in the entire Northeast. This team holds dual significance for Kempy since most of their players are siblings of former players. “This is what the club is built on, the kids on this team are siblings of older kids. This is why we built the club, for kids to feel like they have a second home”

It is essential for PSU to have nice coaches. Kempy prides himself in how he has been able to push his players without being mean. He can work them hard without telling them that they suck. Although the club has grown, those values have never changed. From running PSU, Kempy has learned to always be true to his values and always be a good person, and also to be patient and put in the work.

Community is an essential part of Kempy’s job. Many of the kids on his teams have been friends for a very long time and although they go to different schools now they are still best friends through soccer. Kempy recalled a particularly impactful moment a few years ago. PSU has organized a club-wide tournament where all 21 travel teams that are a part of the organization go and play. Kempy’s team made it to the finals and every single person from all the 20 other teams came and started cheering “PSU! PSU! PSU!”. Even though the team lost, all the other kids came on and congratulated the players and gave them hugs, a moment that symbolized to him how big and strong the community has become, from both the coaches and the players. Kempy says for him “It’s not about how good your players are, it’s about the people you’re trying to create and the values you’re trying to instill.”

The most important part of Kempy’s job to him is building the right values in his players. Over the last 10 years, he’s embraced his position as a role model for all the kids in the club. If he wants the kids to be good people, he’s gonna show up as a good person. “If you want the kids to be really good, you have to be really good.”

In 10 years, Kempy hopes to expand PSU to older ages. He wants college-aged players and adults to all be wearing the PSU badge. Kempy says he’s waiting for an ex-player to send their kid to play for PSU. Kempy does not see the business slowing down anytime soon and is excited to see how much bigger Park Slope United will get.