Editor,
As a competitive foil fencer, my second home was at the San Francisco Fencers’ Club (SFFC) on Balboa Street. When COVID-19 encompassed the Bay Area in Spring of 2020, SFFC closed like many other youth-centered athletic clubs. Undeterred, classes shifted to Zoom and focused on footwork, target practice and lots of pushups.
In the summer of 2020, the ceaseless efforts of the committed parents and dedicated coaches produced a credible, albeit tiny, fencing haven by occupying a fellow fencer’s backyard. For four days a week, my friends and I were delighted to actually fence and see each other again in spite of the heat, fog or even rain. Now, over a year later, we are still in our little backyard club and working hard to improve.
Most clubs around the country have reopened and returned to normal with the exception of wearing masks. In spite of all the health and financial obstacles our small club has faced, we’ve thrived, grown closer, supported one another, and excelled in team as well as individual events. In a recent national competition for those under 20, four of the top eight fencers were from our club, including myself.
Our year with COVID has taught me that people interacting with other people makes a place feel like home and not the building or the name on it. I am so proud to be part of such a supportive and resilient COVID “bubble.” They are my family, which is far more precious than winning any medal.
Chin-Yi Kong
San Mateo
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.