Hope Solo, the famed goalkeeper for the U.S. women’s soccer team, is visiting the Flathead Valley later this month for a two-day fundraiser supporting the Flathead Rapids organization.
Solo will appear at fundraiser events, March 23-24, including a presentation at Columbia Falls High School and a clinic in Kalispell, according to O’Brien Byrd, the event’s primary organizer and the person who landed the two-time Olympic gold medalist.
“This is huge. We’re so excited to bring her here and to raise money for the (Flathead Rapids) club,” Byrd said last week.
Tickets for separate events are available online.
Solo, 31, was born in Richland, Wash., and plays professionally for the Seattle Reign in the National Women’s Soccer League. She is widely hailed as one of the best goalies in the world and has won two Olympic gold medals for the U.S., including most recently at the London Games.
A welcome party for Solo will be held at 6 p.m., March 23, at the Great Northern Bar in Whitefish. Attendees must be 21 years or older and tickets are $50. Catered food will be provided and a live auction will be held. A limited amount of tickets are available.
On Sunday, March 24, Solo will give a presentation and share stories from her career with Gina Brewer, the women’s soccer coach at Hawaii Pacific University, at Columbia Falls High from noon to 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 per person and $30 per family. Only 1,000 tickets are available.
Later that day, Solo will hold a goalkeeper clinic for 20 lucky players. Tickets are $50 and available to local boys and girls between the ages of 12-18.
From 3-5 p.m. in Kalispell, Brewer will lead girls in a training session and 80-minute scrimmage.
All proceeds from the weekend support the Flathead Rapids, a local organization that runs youth and adult soccer programs.
For more information about the events, visit the Rapids’ website or Facebook page.