Sara Adkins-Blanch President Having been born and raised in Barcelona, Barça pretty much runs through my veins! I have enjoyed seeing many of the club’s icons play in person, but Carles Rexach is an all-time favorite. A member of our penya since its inception, it’s an honor and a privilege to serve on our penya’s board. I love being part of the culé family through our penya and I welcome each and every one of you to the family. Benviguts! Welcome! ¡Bienvenidos! Alonso Villanueva Vice President Born and raised in Lima, Peru, I became a Barça fan during the times of Ronaldo – the real one. The "fenómeno" left but my allegiance to the club remained. My passion for the team grew much larger once I came to the US for college, even during times where we were not always a winning team. I now feel privileged to share this passion with a family of fellow passionate Barça supporters in DC. Thanks Penya DC! Visca el Barça! Ana Alvarez Secretary Visiting my extended family in Mexico every summer with all my cousins wearing the green El Tri jerseys, I naturally became a fan of the Mexican national soccer team. When Rafael Márquez joined Barcelona in 2003, despite not knowing anything about the team, I decided to support it out of loyalty for him. However, I quickly fell in love with a team that included Puyol, Xavi, Iniesta, Ronaldinho and soon enough Messi. Through the highs and lows, my love for FC Barcelona has grown so unsurprisingly, the first match I attended at Elephant & Castle back in 2017, I immediately felt like I was home despite living in Philly at the time. I love the sense of camaraderie and passion felt during the matches and I feel incredibly privileged to be part of this wonderful DC Penya family. Força Barça! Debissa Nuressa Treasurer My start with FC Barcelona came in the form of the FIFA 06 video game. I was totally new to football at the time and asked that friend I was playing with choose a team for me that he thought I would enjoy. 20+ years later and my love for FC Barcelona has never been stronger! FC Barcelona has become such a pillar of my life and perhaps the thing in this world that brings me the most joy. From magicians like Iniesta and Xavi, to all-time greats like Ronaldinho and Messi, over the years, Barça made the impossible on a football pitch seem so simple, and in the process has captivated the hearts of so many around the world, myself included. Beyond the wizardry on the pitch, I think what I love about FC Barcelona the most is the unwavering commitment to the principle of “Més Que un Club”, the idea that excellence on a football pitch matters not if we ourselves are not being good neighbors in the world, both from sporting and non-sporting perspectives. I’ll love this club till my dying breath, and I mean it with every fiber of sincerity in my being when I say, I support the best club in the world. Visca Barça! Alan Calderon Board Member I joined the Penya about two years ago. I’ve been a fan of FC Barcelona since I was 10 years old. Some of the greatest memories of my childhood are cheering the team on with my dad at a restaurant near home. I joined the board because I want to help create those same memories for new families who join the Penya and for long-term members that have seen the Penya grow. As a member of the Board, I run our Penya’s external communications — everything from social media graphics to videos to coordinating interviews with local press. See me if you have any ideas for videos or contests that we can use for our social media! Leslie Ayuk-Takor Board Member I have been a fan of FC Barcelona since high school, when the main outlets for my mild (?) obsession were constantly wearing the jersey to school, using the school computers to check scores and news, and just not shutting up about it. In college, Barça became my comfort blanket when everything around was new and daunting. Now, Barça is the place where I find community. I have been a member of the Penya since 2021, and in those years, I have made friends and memories that I’ll treasure forever. My hope is that everyone who visits or forms a part of the penya feels the same values of community, passion, and joy that make FC Barcelona “més que un club”. |
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