My name is Brad Eldeen and I am part of the Hawkeye Wrestling Club Board. I wanted to thank all of you for being donors and for helping our club continue to grow. Over the past few months we have worked hard at getting our message out to fans. This past season has been a great example of how a small community can come together to do great things for the HWC.
I am pretty new around here and I thought it might be good to introduce myself and explain why I am here. I grew up in a wrestling family. I’ve lived in Iowa City most of my life and have been an Iowa Wrestling fan for as long as I can remember. When I was younger my dad was part of the HAWK Klub and my brother and I grew up running around the Westfield Inn after duals in the early 80’s. We were towel boys at major tournaments and quite a few wrestlers stopped by the house for a pig roast.
My dad, Elden, watched the Hawks win titles from 1978 to 1985, but sadly passed away in the summer of 85’. At his funeral, countless people from the wrestling community came to pay their respects. I remember he was buried in Hawkeye Wrestling Sweats. After he passed, the Hawkeye wrestling community didn’t leave us behind. Duane Goldman was my brother’s Big Brother and now and again Dan Gable would stop by the house and drop off tickets. That meant a lot to my family.
I wrestled through high school, but in college, I started to realized the impact wrestling had on me.
“Once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy.” Dan Gable
I believe in wrestling and values that come along with it. Through wrestling we develop accountability and respect. Through wrestling we learn when to seize opportunity. I’ve used those skills to develop a strong family and a small logistics business in Coralville. When the opportunity arose for me to help the HWC, I jumped in head first. Helping the HWC is a way for me to honor my dad and all those coaches and wrestlers that honored us in our childhood.
So, what do I do? Well, I’m working with Randy Novak to build off what he and other board members have started. We’re adding some structure here and there. We’re making sure our brand is promoted on social media.
We’re building relationships and developing close knit groups to help accomplish things like the social at Big Grove. Most of all we’re listening to all of you. In the end it’s your passion that fuels this club, it’s a big reason why these athletes can train at the highest level. You know what helps these wrestlers compete at an even higher level? Partners. Partners can push us to the edge and bring us back again, stronger than before. Iron sharpens Iron.
Today we need you to be a partner with the HWC. Help us build off this momentum. Join the Inner Circle and help us get back to where we belong.
#Sorensen Strong and Go Hawks!
