The China family was outside of their home on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021 when they received news that Edgar China said left him heartbroken.

“I didn’t really believe it at first until we went to the funeral, and then that’s when I broke down,” China said.

His brother Arath Chavez, who was a member of the Sacramento State men’s soccer team from 2018 to 2019, passed away from a motorcycle accident.

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“I remember it like it just happened. I don’t see any of those memories going away,” China’s older brother Jhonathan China said.

China had just lost one of his older brothers during his sophomore year of high school and up to that point, Chavez was the only member of his family to attend college.

“It was a little tough, but we pushed through it. I think it made our family stronger and made us closer and made us just appreciate us more,” China said.

Since Chavez was the first of his family to go to college, Jhonathan said he was an inspiration to the rest of his siblings to be able to eventually attend college too.

China eventually followed in his late brother’s footsteps, attending Sac State where he said he constantly remembers him as he now plays soccer on the field his brother once played on.

Many past Sac State soccer players have lived where China lives which he said brings back memories of Chavez.

“The team picture from one of the years he played is up on the wall, so every time I look at the wall, I always see him,” China said.

Soccer was always something him and his siblings bonded over, thanks to the love for the game being passed on by their father. Francisco China, China’s father, played soccer when he was younger in Mexico, which his children saw once they lived in the U.S.

“Going out to play in Los Angeles, where I used to live, I remember it was just these dirt fields and there was no grass,” China said. “Playing there, getting dirty all over and that’s probably the best memory.”

Francisco met Alma Chavez, China’s mother, in Van Nuys, California after both immigrating to the United States at separate times.

They met in the U.S. despite being from nearby towns in the state of Colima in Mexico.

Eventually, Alma’s first two sons, Daniel Alverez and Chavez, immigrated to the U.S. Alma and Francisco later started a family together with children Jhonathan, Edgar and Shayla China.

China’s parents describe him as a curious kid who never stopped asking questions, which enabled him to make friends with anyone and everyone. Francisco said China was always open-minded about things, active and a bit mischievous.

Francisco recalls China’s childhood when there was a time he received a photo of China riding a calf in his hometown in Mexico as he willingly got on with no regard for the consequences.

“As a kid, he was hyperactive. He wasn’t shy,” Francisco said. “He always liked to joke around, he would make his brothers throw fits because of how they got along but in a healthy way. Then he would just laugh once he got a reaction out of them.”

Jhonathan said that they would fight about pretty much everything in a lighthearted way, just like their father describes it.

“We’re only a year apart in age, so we would have a lot of the same friends and we’d go out with them, but at home we would always start fighting about who gets to play the Xbox or Playstation and other stuff like that,” Jhonathan said.

China and his family would eventually move from the Los Angeles area to Galt.

Part of the reason China’s parents decided to move was that it is a rural town with working-class people that reminded both Alma and Francisco of their hometowns in Mexico.

“Once we started to get to know people here and began to make friends, we never wanted to return to Los Angeles,” Francisco said.

Galt’s population is 42.8% Hispanic, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, something China said he enjoys.

“Everyone knows each other; everyone talks to each other. If there’s a problem, everyone knows,” China said. “They have really helped me out a lot since I was young. They supported me, my brothers, my sister – just my whole family – to become better.”

Growing up, China described the weekends as chaos. All his siblings played sports, so his parents scrambled to take everyone to games and practices.

Around the age of 12, China made the jump to play at San Juan Soccer Club, a higher level of competition in club soccer.

He went on to play at Galt High School as a forward for three years, where he scored 11 goals in nine matches his sophomore season and 13 goals with 14 assists in his junior season.

He transitioned to the starting goalkeeper at his school his senior season, something that wasn’t too unfamiliar to him.

“For San Juan, I’ve played goalie basically since I started there,” China said. “The reason I played up top was because my brother was also goalie.”

China’s family was always supportive of his athletic career, he said they would attend every game they could and helped with fundraisers or worked the ‘snack shack’ for games.

After numerous athletic accolades, participating in the Future Farmers of America program and earning the “G” Award at Galt High School for his contributions to school culture and community, it was time for China to follow in Chavez’s footsteps and go to college.

China enrolled at Cosumnes River College to continue his athletic career and had begun training when he got an unexpected call from an old club coach.

“A day or two in, I got a call from Coach McDougall saying that one of the keepers had quit at the last minute, and they needed someone else,” China said. “It was really stressful at the time. I had to do a lot of paperwork, so I wasn’t able to practice for about a week.”

Matt McDougall, China’s former coach and former Sac State men’s goalkeeper from 2002 to 2006, called him, as the current associate head coach for Sac State men’s soccer.

With the Hornets down a goalkeeper, McDougall turned to China with the opportunity to play on the same field Arath once did.

“I always told him, if something ever came up, ‘I would take you in a heartbeat’ because I know his quality, and I know what type of person he is,” McDougall said. “He’ll do anything for the team.”

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China redshirted his first year at Sac State, which meant taking a year off from competing to develop his skills and extend his four years of athletic eligibility.

He is currently a redshirt freshman who has bonded with his teammates because of the connections he made through his brother.

“There’s still some of the guys that are still here that have played maybe a year or two with Arath, so I’ve known them since I was younger. I think I’ve really bonded with the team easily because of that,” China said.

McDougall said it means the world to see China follow in his brother’s footsteps at Sac State.

“He’s honoring his family, and when he walks across the stage, it will be the most rewarding thing,” McDougall said. “For me, that is going to be the most blessed day because of how hard he worked in the circumstances that he’s gone through in life.”

After graduation, China hopes to continue playing soccer professionally, something his parents believe he can do.

“With sacrifice, you can accomplish anything. In this sport, you’ll sacrifice time with your family, your partner, your friends, parties, but when he reaches his goal is when he’ll be rewarded,” Alma said.

Not only does China remember Chavez, but McDougall also holds on to his memory every day when he gets to his office.

“We honor him every day. I have his locker room placard in my office, so I see it every time I turn on the switch when I come in the morning so it’s amazing,” McDougall said. “To me, Edgar’s release is to play soccer, so every time I saw him out here, this was a joy for him.”