(Photo: Private album)
ALEXANDRIA, VA – It was a day designed to test the resilience of an entire community. On Thursday evening, severe storms tore through Northern Virginia, knocking out power to over 11,000 residents and plunging Alexandria into pitch darkness.
But inside the blackened gymnasium of Episcopal High School, something extraordinary happened.
Guided only by the beam of local police flashlights and the glow of parents’ cell phones, a chorus of 26 Croatian-American children broke the eerie silence, singing “Moja domovina” at the top of their lungs.
The Croatian National Football Team (Vatreni) icons, including Luka Modrić, Ivan Perišić, Andrej Kramarić, and Head Coach Zlatko Dalić, were patient and kind to the students while signing jerseys in the dark and receiving their letters.
What could have been a logistical disaster instead became the ultimate validation of a year-long journey of unity and identity shared by the diaspora youth.
A Royal Welcome at the Embassy
The historic day began with families traveling from major hubs across the United States – Chicago, Boston, New York, and Cleveland, uniting under the banner of the Croatian Schools in the USA platform.
The delegation’s very first stop was a wonderful, warm reception at the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in Washington, D.C. Walking through the doors of the embassy, the students, many of whom are third- or fourth-generation Croatian-Americans, felt an immediate wave of institutional belonging.
During the visit, it was emphasized that these children are not just students learning a language; they are the true ambassadors of Croatian culture within their local American communities. It was a proud moment that beautifully set the tone for the rest of the trip.
(Photo: Private album)
From the Embassy, the excitement turned electric. The students piled onto a specially branded, red-and-white checkered bus, singing and sharing stories as they crossed the Potomac River into Alexandria, Virginia, heading toward the training camp.
When Football Becomes the Classroom
The journey to meet the national team was far more than a simple field trip. For Andrea Katić Bruno, the National Coordinator for Croatian Schools in the USA, this moment was the culmination of an innovative educational shift where football is integrated directly into their Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) curriculum.
“Through our football curriculum, we do everything,” Katić Bruno explained. “When we teach numbers, we learn them through the numbers on the Vatreni jerseys. When we learn the national anthem, we teach them to sing it with a hand over their heart. When we motivate them to speak Croatian, we ask them, ‘Well, did you hear how Luka, Kova, or Joško speak fluently with journalists from all over the world?’”
“We teach our students through the players’ example how to remain humble in victory, how to rise with dignity when we fall, and how to fight despite injustice,” she added. “We teach them that we are best when it is hardest. That is when the brain grows, that is when muscles grow, but most importantly – that is when the heart grows.”
(Photo: Private album)
One Great, Unbroken Croatian Soul
For these children, who routinely wake up in the middle of the night due to time differences just to watch their icons play, the flashlight autograph session was a profound moment of validation.
“The most important message the Vatreni gave them by opening their hearts in the dark was a message of belonging,” Katić Bruno noted.
“They showed these kids that they are seen, that they are recognized, and that the homeland deeply cares about them, even if they live thousands of miles away. They gave them the undeniable feeling that we are all part of one, great, unbroken Croatian soul (jedno veliko hrvatsko biće).”
As the storm cleared over Alexandria, the multi-city cohort left the facility with signed jerseys, unforgettable photos, and a renewed passion for their heritage.
The lights may have gone out in Virginia, but the fire for their culture, their language, and their team has never burned brighter.
