It's safe to say that Kansas City Wizards goalkeeper Kevin Hartman has had his fair share of success since beginning his professional career in 1997. But for Hartman, success is a result of three things: opportunity, perseverance and having a little bit of luck on your side.
"I was lucky," said Hartman. "Coming into the league I was fortunate enough to have a couple of things go my way. It was never perfect. I remember playing with a broken scaphoid for almost two years and even winning a championship with a broken wrist. The fact that I was able to work hard and persevere is what allowed me to have success as an MLS goalkeeper."
Yet throughout it all -- even in the midst of a 30-game regular season schedule, all the travel, team training and this year's playoff run -- Hartman has somehow managed to become a published author, and in doing so, find an avenue to dedicate time to the community.
Hartman has written Boots Saves the Day, his new children's book which is a story about a farm kitten that loves soccer and wants to prove his skills to his fellow farm animals. Over the past few months, Hartman has showcased the book by embarking upon a book reading series where he appeared in five locations throughout the Kansas City metropolitan area.
The book, inspired by a passion for working with kids and encouraging children to read, has been the groundwork behind the newly created Kevin Hartman Foundation, which he created after writing the book but then wishing to find a way to dispense some of the profits.
Proceeds from the sale of the book -- which is illustrated by Hartman's wife Jennifer -- will go to help some of his favorite charities.
"It's been a huge epiphany for me that we've had this opportunity to visit Kansas City area schools, libraries, bookstores, to encourage kids and their parents that reading for fun is both advantageous and healthy for you," said Hartman.
Hartman has worked with Major League Soccer's literacy program in the past, focusing on raising awareness about the critical importance of reading to children, including the growing number of youth from foreign countries that have limited English skills. Hartman has also become the spokesperson for the MLS W.O.R.K.S initiative Active Bodies Active Minds, an online program that focuses on the importance of physical and mental fitness during the summer months.
He concentrates his community service work on spreading the word about literacy, making sure kids don't miss out on the benefits of reading for enjoyment, and not as an obligation.
Hartman is also grateful for having been raised in a scholastic household by his mother, who was a teacher and his father, who was the president of a university. However, for the UCLA grad, reading wasn't always his idea of fun.
"I never really read for fun growing up," said Hartman. "At UCLA I would cram three books in the night before an exam, pick up the cliff notes and then forget about them forever. Now I look back and feel like I missed out on a lot of reading."
Over his 12-year MLS career, the first 10 of which he spent with the LA Galaxy, Hartman has won two MLS Cup titles, earned an MLS Goalkeeper of the Year award, multiple club MVP honors and set a handful of MLS goalkeeping records.
It is that type of leadership that Hartman has brought to a young Kansas City Wizards squad that finished the season with an impressive 5-1-1 record to secure one of two wildcard spots in the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs.
The curtain on the Wizards magical season might have been pulled when they fell 3-1 in aggregate goals to the Supporters' Shield-winning Columbus Crew in the Eastern Conference Semifinal Series, but Hartman sees plenty of upside with the core of young players on the Kansas City roster.
"There's a youthful exuberance to the team that makes it very, very fun to play," said Hartman. "You have guys around you who have great confidence in their abilities but are also willing to learn. People may not talk about us when they talk about the great teams in the league. But, we have an undying belief in one another that will surely benefit us in the long run."
Hartman has certainly caught up on his reading since entering the league and finds more time to read now that he is blessed with all the free time that comes with being a professional athlete. Writing the book and starting his own foundation is Hartman's way of giving back to the game that has brought him great fortune on and off the field.
"Giving back to the game of soccer is something that's never going change," said Hartman.
If the saying is true that good luck happens when preparedness meets opportunity, then Kevin Hartman is one lucky guy.
Hartman's book, Boots Saves the Day, is available for $9.99 at www.kcsoccerstore.com.
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