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Show lave BiSmMltiiil tRY R. BLODGETT rERVlLLE Itwasa i decision for David , : !, sports editor for the , ;iunty Clipper, to make : jjS family moved to Y j from Epsom, Eng- 193. WAS only 12 years already was a promisor promis-or player promising i that professional ere giving him the x" ,er. n? .jsan all-county player :nt ;;e. which is equivalent ies :'an all-state basketball a js a freshman in high ll was rare for such a ittilete to be so adv-JDht adv-JDht TEngland'spasttime of :quis .C0I IVAS one of only two issoc ;pers in a" EnSland idvai ltie nauona' soccer ex-iine ex-iine lin a wr'en ant) ing i test about soccer jjssing score above 95 n Coi ln " achievement, too, was "tomJ-tandDave waconsi-proceitop waconsi-proceitop prospect to play ng svJnal soccer as soon as ' pted from high school igineetii hecort ra,e4,THAT was three years n! 4e future and Dave's re7i'tpad already decided to ies a eir bags and make the journey to America. Dave had his choice (1) to go with his tamily to America or (2) to remain re-main in England, graduate trom school, and take a chance getting an offer to play professional profes-sional soccer. Dave decided to stay with his family and make the trip to America. "But it was a hard choice," said Dave. "I knew that by going to America it would mean leaving my first love, soccer, behind." AFTER ARRIVING in Bountiful, the Wigham family was sponsored by the former Walker Mabey family. It took Dave 19 years until two weeks ago to finally become a naturalized citizen of the U.S. "I don't knowwhy.but I just kept putting it (citizenship) off," he said. "I decided that when I took out my (citizenship) (citizen-ship) papers I wanted it to be because I wanted it, not what someone else wanted." SO DAVE was "sworn in" with 56 other "aliens" on March 16 at the Federal Building Build-ing in Ogden. Dave took up the game of soccer almost before he learned to walk. He was playing play-ing competitive soccer at age 5 and by age 12 when he left England had earned a room full of trophies. HIS BEST friend was also a top-notch soccer player and had signed a professional con-stract con-stract at age 16, just one year out of high school. After settling in Bountiful, Dave kept up his soccer playing play-ing and was named All-State three consecutive years at Bountiful High. His senior year, Dave was nominated High School All-American. IN 1968, he and another Utah athlete, Flemming Jen-son, Jen-son, were mentioned to try out for the 1968 Olympics Soccer Team. Ironically, neither was an American citizen and had to decline. Flemming went on to become be-come a star kicker for the U . of U. football team. "I HAVE no regrets about coming to America when I did," Dave says. Then with a pause he added, "but it would have been nice to have stayed England just a few more years to see if I really could have made the professional ranks as a soccer player. Now I guess I'll never know." Even though Dave left his coveted trophies behind when the family moved to America with only four packed suitcases suit-cases and $100, he has earned another room full of trophies with his many individual and team accomplishments here in the U.S. DAVE WAS baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of If ....... ".-V ' :-: f i ;: . . : S : " i DAVE WIGHAM Latter-day Saints at the age of 12 while living in England. He said other church members "tricked" him into joining the Church by allowing him to play for "their team" which happened hap-pened to be a church-sponsored church-sponsored MIA team. "When I found out what it was all about, ab-out, I was already baptized," Dave laughed. But his delay in becoming a naturalized citizen has for the past several years earned Dave the nickname, "Alien." "Now I guess they will have to come up with another nickname," nick-name," he smiled, "because I'm an American citizen just like them." |