The Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation

Ucal McKenzie was a counselor at Newton North high school. He was happily married and always had a smile on his face. He coached the boys varsity soccer team along with a team outside of school during the year and ran multiple soccer camps during the summer. Ucal always seemed to enjoy life, and he lived everyday to the fullest. I had never seen Ucal frowning. Last year, Ucal died. His death was unexpected and brought the always-moving Newton North community to a stand still. What Ucal achieved during his life, and what was done in remembrance after it, embodies the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr.
Ucal was a native of Jamaica and he came to New York in 1992. He then went on to have an impressive four-year career as a midfielder at Suffolk University in Boston. He continued playing through the Dorchester-based Carico Soccer Club and was also a coach at Valeo Futbol Club and Academy. Ucal went out of his way to help others and truly wanted to make a difference in other peoples’ lives. He would even leave early from school to give one of his athletes a ride if needed. Never had I heard Ucal say ‘no’ ‘can’t’ or ‘won’t’ and I tried to not say it around him either because it just felt out of place. “Every person he ever met, touched, helped, inspired, laughed with, and loved was a unique, yet integral part of his world”(- the Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation.) Ucal was a husband, friend, son, brother, guidance counselor, coach, and teammate. On March 30th 2009, Ucal was playing a soccer game in South Boston. He started feeling chest pains and removed himself from the game. While going to get a drink of water, Ucal collapsed. I, along with many others, was in complete shock after hearing he had passed away.
When most people think of Ucal, they think of the photo that was passed around the school: him wearing a black hat and sweatshirt with a field behind him. But what stands out the most is his shining smile against the darkness of his skin. Ucal’s smile was engraved into the minds of everyone that saw it. It was never a clenched teeth smile and always seemed so relaxed and happy. It fit perfectly with the kind of goofy way that his ears stood out. His eyes would slightly turn into slits causing his cheeks to move up. It was a smile that people could look forward to seeing when they saw him.
As a counselor, it was literally Ucal’s job to help students. He even helped students outside of school as well as other teachers and people. He made sure to remember the names of everyone he talked to and say ‘hi’ in the halls. Even the darkest days were brightened by Ucal’s smile. I remember last year I was really angry over an argument that I had had with a friend. When I saw him all the anger just rushed away. I couldn’t help but smile. Music and laughter would always drift out of his office door into the hallway. Ucal never had anything bad to say about anyone. He wasn’t one of those people who was just nice while there was a crowd. He often welcomed people who just walked right into his office offering whatever he could give. He also would never have his door closed unless someone wanted privacy. To some, Ucal didn’t even seem like a teacher, he would talk about his life to students as if they were friends. Ucal made it so we could tell him things without the thought of him being a teacher in the back of our minds. He was a stress reliever in an over-hectic life.
Out of school, Ucal dedicated his time to soccer. When he wasn’t coaching the varsity team, Ucal was playing himself or coaching kids to play just as well as he did. He combined the sport he loved with fun to get others to love soccer just as much as he did. Ucal worked at the Garden City Soccer Camp and at the conditioning camp during the summer. He was able to make both enjoyable while teaching. One moment about Ucal shines in my memory is from camp. For fun, we decided to have a relay race. One part of the relay race was to do a wheelbarrow, when one person walks on their hands as another guides them while holding their feet. The field was pretty muddy and one of our friends kept complaining about not wanting to get dirty. My other friend and I looked at each other and started making weird faces while mimicking the girl’s complaints in high pitch voices. That was the first time I heard Ucal laugh. It boomed across the field and seemed to echo off trees. From then on whenever I was talking with Ucal I would wrinkle my face and repeat in the same high pitch voice that I had gotten dirty, just to hear him laugh.
After Ucal’s death, there was a fundraiser to support The Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation. All proceeds went to the foundation to create soccer clinics. The clinics teach players to be more creative and efficient while also having CPR courses and nutrition and wellness information. The fundraiser consisted of two major soccer games, a few smaller ones, and Ucal’s wife and family selling t-shirts. A big turnout was expected, but no one was prepared for the huge mass of people who came and went throughout the day. At the end, there was a remembrance for Ucal. By the time that came around, the field was over crowded, people banging into each other every few steps. There was not only the expected Newton North students, but there were others too, like family and friends of Ucal. Ucal had touched each person at that field. Ucal’s wife and others spoke as all different races and ages listened intently. The Suffolk University Athletics Director Jim Nelson, who remembered him strongly, helped retire Ucal’s number from the foundation. “People can strive to be like Ucal, but no one can be him,” Nelson said. Ucal was such a great person, a hero. He donated his time to anyone but himself. He helped those who needed it by doing something he loved, which is what the Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation is striving to do.
Although I had only known Ucal for a year, he was and still is the reason I go to North. He was the first teacher I had met and liked that taught there and I couldn’t wait to spend the next four years of my life seeing his smiling face on my way to homeroom. Ucal had touched my heart the same way he had touched so many others. He changed the way I view life. Ucal had an optimistic view on everything and seemed to appreciate everything that came his way, always thinking that things could be worse. He took on every challenge without a word of doubt. He has inspired me to be grateful for what I have and to never think I can’t do something. Ucal McKenzie was a counselor at Newton North high school. He was happily married and always had a smile on his face. He always seemed to enjoy life. He lived everyday to the fullest. I had never seen him frowning.