The Life of Megan: Finding What Defines Me

            She loves Soccer and loves video work. She never knew what would come next when she committed to Washington State University.

            A highly recruited defender from Fountain Valley, California, Megan Garrity in her Junior year tore her right ACL. The following year she tore her left ACL. She was still able to keep her scholarship and redshirted her Freshman year.  

             “Your brain is somewhere, and your goals are somewhere, but your body is not keeping up, and it is frustrating. No one can describe it and it is not anything you are doing wrong,” Megan said.

            As a Redshirt Freshman she was traveled with the team and was fully recovered from her injuries. The spring of her sophomore season she tore her left ACL again ending her soccer career.

            “It was a big growing period. I asked myself does what my body can do define me? Does soccer define me? If I cannot do this then where do I go,” Megan said.

            Megan had had four knee surgeries in four years.  

            “For athletes, having the game taken away from you is like taking a piece of life away. So many athletes put their heart into their sport, and it was devastating to see that taken away from her,” Nate Weber, assistant equipment manager said.

            Overcoming Her Obstacles

            In the early recruiting stages for soccer, Megan was looking for schools with a good athletic training department. Luckily for her, WSU had a great program for athletic training, and an excellent journalism program.

            “I switched my major my senior year of high school because of my position as the producer of Baron Broadcast high school news show,” Megan said.

            In her freshman year of high school, she joined the newspaper. Megan wanted to leave the newspaper because she disliked it so much, but her teacher convinced her to not quit journalism. She joined the video class her junior year and got really involved.

            “By my senior year I was producing most of the episodes, and really fell in love with it. I fell in love with video and decide to switch over to journalism,” Megan said.

            After her soccer career ended, Megan got really involved with the Murrow College of Communications and joined Cable 8, a student run on-campus cable station. She said joining Cable 8 was the best thing to happen to her in college. It was a blessing in disguise.

            “The confidence it gave me, the access it gave me was huge. You have the freedom to roll with everything you wanted,” Megan said.   

            Megan graduated from WSU in 2013 with degrees in Communication/Broadcast Production and Spanish. After graduation she interned with Los Angeles Dodgers for Spring Training in Arizona.

            An Opportunity of a Lifetime

            After Megan’s internship with the Dodgers, she was to do freelance work as a videographer with the U.S. Soccer Federation. She worked with the Men’s and Women’s teams through 2017.

            “I knew Megan was a great videographer after I saw her video she made for her RS-Freshman soccer season. It was a team video reflecting on the season, and it was an awesome video,” John Benton, former mentee family member said.

            She was in charge of cutting videos for their website and social media platforms as well as technical video for coaching staffs. She was able to travel with the teams throughout the globe.

            Megan said she had the opportunity to work alongside the USA women’s team that won the World Cup in Canada in 2015, and in Brazil at the Olympics.

            “Looking back on those times I am so thankful for everything I was able to experience. I was able to go to 55 different stadiums. I tell people all the time that video took me farther in soccer than my soccer skills ever would have,” Megan said.

            She was able to meet Ed Sheeran backstage in Central Park, stood on the world cup champion field as Joe Biden and his secret service arrived, and was able to meet Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

             Megan said she didn’t see her friends and family for months and was away from her former boyfriend now husband for more than eight months. The last eight years of her life have been a blessing but felt that she needed to move on and find a new identity.

            The Next Chapter

             The next challenge of her life was moving away from sports and broadening her skills and focus.

            She accepted a job as the Video Production Coordinator for Seattle Sounders FC. The position had less stress, but still was in five different cities a month.

            After two years she moved on from sports and is a video editor for a Yogo app called Alo Move, located in Seattle, Washington.

            “My injury really helped my transition from moving away from the sports field. My injuries have helped make what my character is today. It helped me define who I am that I can still be myself without sports and am still learning in an active industry,” Megan said.

            Megan still works as a freelancer. She worked for the playoffs for the Sounders, and the U.S. soccer team. She knows that she will always be involved, but it is redefining what that involvement will be in the future.

             At the age of 30 there is still so much to discover in Megan’s life. She now has time to grow her relationship with her husband and her dog in Seattle.

            “I am so grateful for all of the events that have taken place in my life, and the experiences that I have been able to have. I am excited to see where life takes me next because you never know what tomorrow can bring,” Megan said.

Sources:

Megan Garrity: 1-206-591-1311

Nate Weber: 1-509-432-3724

John Benton: 425-466-0292