Please donate $8 or more, if you are able, in order to help Tiffany Weimer, her fellow players, and host family recover from a devastating fire. https://www.gofundme.com/nwslfirefund

Ocho. Tiffany Weimer may have worn #19 on the pitch for the 2013 NWSL Championship winning Thorns FC team, but supporters who followed her career closely knew that Tiffany’s nickname was Ocho, and that she has a specific affinity for Batman. Tiffany scored the monumental tying goal in the sweltering heat of the semifinal game at Kansas City and she was an enormous reason why there is a star above the Thorns crest and a banner hanging in our stadium.

Tiffany also wrote eloquently during the end of our inaugural season about the Superheroes tifo and what it was like to feel the kind of support we are known for in Portland. Tiffany’s post is a great reminder why we do what we do, and you should read it all. This section is especially pertinent today:

Imagine doing what you love for a living. Then imagine 15,000 people cheering you on every time you land a plane or publish a book. Or whatever it is you love doing.

Then imagine your competitor trying to bring you down. And those same 15,000 people standing behind you saying “no, honey, you need to take a step back, this is our house.” And that happening every single day. And even if you make a mistake on the job, like the best friend that will always tell you “you were too good for Zac Efron anyway”, they will show you unconditional love like you’ve never experienced.

When someone has your back, you truly feel like you can do anything. Your superhero superpower is invincibility. You’re untouchable. Being on a field competing in an arena like professional sports, there’s nothing more powerful.

Earlier this afternoon, we learned that Tiffany Weimer and her fellow professional soccer players Tori Huster and Britt Eckerstrom, alongside Britt’s parents, Pam and Kurt, have lost almost everything they own to a fire. Thankfully, nobody was injured.

One of the images from the aftermath of the fire that has most struck with me is Tiffany’s journal, covered in ash, on top of a book with a sticker of her trademark Batman silhouette.

The signal has been sent for our community to rally and support our superhero once more. Instead of 15,000 people cheering Tiffany on the pitch, we need to stand behind her and those impacted by this horrible event. While it may not be during the course of a game, we know that community during all facets of life is important, especially through trials such as these. We have your back, Tiffany. Once a Thorn, always a Thorn.

Please consider donating $8 or more in order to help Tiffany Weimer, her fellow players, and host family recover from a devastating fire. https://www.gofundme.com/nwslfirefund