Buffs Carry Ellie’s Legacy Through Kindness

BOULDER – Before the Colorado soccer team took the field for practice Monday, the Buffaloes spent time reflecting on something larger than the game.

Josh Berg, co-founder of the Be Like Ellie Foundation, joined the team for a conversation and team-building activity centered around kindness, continuing a special relationship between the foundation and a program that held an important place in his daughter Ellie's life.

That connection began years ago, when Berg first started bringing Ellie to Colorado soccer matches.

He wanted his daughter to grow up to be a strong, powerful woman, and he believed there were few better examples for her to look up to than the women in Black and Gold competing for the Buffaloes. Ellie quickly became a devoted CU soccer fan.

Born Feb. 12, 2017, Ellie Pearl Berg was named after her great-grandmothers, Evelyn and Pearl. From an early age, she had a gift for connecting with others and making people feel seen. She loved puppies, sports, dancing, music, fashion, and her friends. She especially loved watching CU women's sports.

For Josh, bringing Ellie to Colorado soccer matches was about more than spending an afternoon together. The student-athletes on the field represented the kind of women he hoped his daughter would one day become.

Ellie passed away at six years old following a tragic accident while playing in her family's backyard.

Her parents, Josh and Carly, later created the Be Like Ellie Foundation with a mission of carrying forward the qualities that defined their daughter and encouraging others to make the world a better place one simple act of kindness at a time.

Monday, Berg brought that message to some of the same women Ellie once watched from the stands.

Berg spoke about the loss of his daughter and the kindness his family experienced in the days that followed.

"Carly, my wife and I, a massive piece of us died that day," Berg told the team. "The term brokenhearted doesn't do it justice because the word broken implies there's a chance that it can be fixed."

He recalled one Boulder Police officer who, after the family returned home from the hospital, asked if he could give Berg a hug. Berg never forgot the gesture, even though he could not remember the officer's name.

Nearly three years later, Berg encountered an officer on Pearl Street and realized during their conversation that it was the same person. This time, Berg initiated the hug.

"Simple kindness made a difference in our lives and the lives of those around us," Berg said. "There are no small acts of kindness. That's our focus."

That message is at the heart of the Be Like Ellie Foundation, which encourages people to recognize everyday opportunities to make others feel seen and supported.

During Monday's visit, players wrote down their interests, paired with teammates and discussed ways those interests could translate into acts of kindness. The exercise also gave the Buffs an opportunity to learn more about one another while Berg challenged them to make kindness a habit.

"You shared with each other. You came up with ideas," Berg said. "There's a lot of kindness in just what we did."

Players also received kindness letters to share with someone whose actions have made a difference in their lives.

The visit continued an existing connection between Colorado soccer and the Be Like Ellie Foundation. The Buffs have participated in the foundation's Heart Rocks initiative, painting rocks with uplifting messages that are placed throughout Boulder for others to discover.

"When you're painting those, there's more to it than just the activity that you're doing," Berg told the team. "You all were a part of that. I want you to know that."

Now, Ellie's connection with Colorado soccer will become a permanent part of the program.

Beginning this year, the Buffaloes will present a Kindness Award in Ellie's honor at the team's annual end-of-season banquet. The award will recognize a member of the program who embodies the kindness and compassion that defined Ellie.

For a girl whose father first brought her to CU soccer matches because he wanted her surrounded by examples of strong women, the honor brings that relationship full circle.

Ellie once looked up to the women wearing Colorado across their chests. Now, future generations of Buffaloes will be reminded to look to Ellie as an example of their own.

One simple act of kindness at a time.

For more information on Colorado Soccer, please visit cubuffs.com/soccer. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffssoccer on Instagram, X, TikTok and Facebook.

University of Colorado Athletics

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