BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The old adage that you’ll always remember where you were when big events happen will ring true for Fire midfielder Michael Videira.
The Milford, Mass. product was in a physical therapy appointment when the two explosions, which took three lives and injured over 170 people, occurred during Monday’s Boston Marathon.
“I had no idea about it because there was no service in the building I was in,” he told Chicago-Fire.com. “I came out to a bunch of texts that were very vague just about something happening at the marathon.”
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Like most of us would, Videira scrambled on his phone to figure out what exactly had happened in his hometown.
“I called friends and family to make sure everyone was fine. Fortunately for me, my family wasn’t there at the time and my friends were a couple hundred yards away. They could see the smoke but they were fine.”
Videira lived in South Boston while a member of the New England Revolution and while it wasn’t the area affected by the blast, like most Bostonians, Monday’s events hit close to home.
“It’s all very scary. When I go into the city, my friends live around the Back Bay and South End area. I’m almost always hanging out there. All my friends now are huddling up together and trying to console each other.”
Even the American soccer community had someone affected by Monday’s events as the Revolution announced that goalkeeper Matt Reis’ father-in-law was one of the more than 170 people injured in the bombing.
“Matt’s father-in-law and his family are definitely in my prayers,” said Videira.
Videira was up late Monday night, admittedly glued to the coverage in his hometown.
“You just see it all and feel awful for the families that were affected most by it. People lost lives and many are injured.
“Boston is a tough place right now, everyone is kind of down but it’s been great to see the support here in Chicago and from around the country. The city will get through this.”
