SAN DIEGO (KGTV) \u2013 Memorial Park in Logan Heights is where a youth soccer club called South Bay FC practices and plays some of their games.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis group of kids,\u00a0amazing group of kids, made up of 9 and 11-year-olds from City Heights to\u00a0South Bay,\u201d Tom Bui said. \u201cA lot of those kids can’t afford youth soccer, club team and whatnot. So, we formed this team\u00a0that we pay for the uniform,\u00a0we look for sponsors to pay for equipment\u00a0and those things,\u00a0and those kids are\u00a0special to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bui is a coach for the South Bay FC team. He told ABC 10News that playing club soccer can be expensive for any family.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt can cost up to hundreds and thousands of dollars.\u00a0For an example,\u00a0uniform itself is $200 to $300\u00a0right; to register to be on a team,\u00a0you know,\u00a0you pay a monthly fee,\u00a0you pay\u00a0$60 to $100 monthly,\u201d Bui said.\u201cFor\u00a0people who are living paycheck to paycheck,\u00a0they can’t afford\u00a0200 to $300 a month\u00a0just to,\u00a0just to have their kid play soccer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bui said the goal of forming this team was to give kids a place to play without a big financial burden on their parents. All they have to pay is the referee fees, which Bui said are around $4 to $5 per game.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, he walked outside to head to work and noticed something was off.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy car was gone. And the first initial thought was, \u2018Did I get my car towed?’ but I’m like, I park it there all the time, right?\u00a0So then right off of that I’m like\u00a0oh my god those kids’ equipment’s in the car,\u201d Bui said.<\/p>\n
Soccer gear like cleats, balls, cones, canopies and benches for the players to sit on were all in the trunk of Bui\u2019s car.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have two cameras that we record during practices so that we can,\u00a0you know,\u00a0analyze\u00a0their practice. That was in there, and that was gone too. So, roughly\u00a0$1200 maybe,\u00a0you know,\u00a0$1500,\u201d Bui said.<\/p>\n
Bui told ABC 10News that he filed a police report after learning his car hadn\u2019t been towed. <\/p>\n
His message to whoever took the car is simple.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike, literally\u00a0take the car, just give the equipment back\u00a0for those kids,\u00a0right?\u00a0The kids,\u00a0they deserve better,\u201d Bui said. \u201cIf you’re watching this and you see this. Honestly,\u00a0I,\u00a0from the bottom of my heart,\u00a0just give back the stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bui tells me he\u2019s appreciated the community\u2019s support during this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy friends and everybody who reached out,\u201d Bui said. \u201cAnd everybody that just said, ‘Hey, how can we help?’ It takes a village.\u201d<\/p>\n