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Follow me on Instagram. That was one of the first things nearly every student I met said to me when I stopped by Stetser Elementary School to visit a meeting of the afterschool program known as Design FC.
It makes sense since they are all young aspiring designers building their portfolios and growing in confidence through the opportunities they get to express themselves through design after school.
Design FC was started in 2018 by Omri Gal, who at the time delayed his senior season on the men’s soccer team to launch the program. He’s since graduated from Swarthmore after being part of an incredible tournament run with the Garnet that saw them advance past the first weekend with a pair of PK shootout wins.
Gal first connected with many of the kids in the program through coaching with the Chester Upland Soccer and has been able to combine his passion for the beautiful game with his love for design, something shared by Philadelphia Union midfielder Warren Creavalle, who joined on as a mentor after meeting Omri while filming an episode of Calen Carr’s The Movement show for MLS.
I talked to Omri, Warren and a few of the young designers for a new podcast series that will focus on the city the Philadelphia Union call home: For Chester.