May 22, 2023

"Being a team mom is a feeling that is at times indescribable.

Jackie Perez is the medical assistant to Jeremy McCormick, MD, chief of the foot and ankle group. She is also mother to pro soccer player, Miguel Perez. Her son, who goes by Miggy, is an 18 year old midfielder for St. Louis CITY SC.

"From the moment we first learned that Miguel was going to be signing his first professional soccer contract to seeing him on the pitch for the very first time, so many moments have brought tears of joy. All Miguel has ever wanted to do was to play soccer. To see him achieve his dream of becoming a pro, and to do it in his hometown, has made it that much more special. He worked extremely hard for this. As a mom, there is no greater joy than seeing your children succeed and do what they love."

As a staff member, she has immense confidence in the soccer club choosing Washington University Orthopedics as the team physicians. "I work with a team of dedicated professionals who go above and beyond to care for their patients. We see many athletes, and it is reassuring to know that if my own boys were to sustain an injury, they would be in great hands with our fantastic physicians."

"I believe that WashU Ortho physicians were selected to treat these elite athletes because of their excellence in this field. I am fortunate enough to have the opportunity to see first hand their work and how they treat patients with injuries. They are a group of highly-motivated, well-trained individuals whose main objective is to get that athlete back on the field as quickly and safely as possible." Wether our doctors are treating players in clinic, or keeping them in pitch-perfect health at the Washington University Orthopedics High Performance Center, it takes the best team in sports medicine to care for these professional athletes. 

"The advice I would give to other parents whose kids play competitive soccer is to be patient. Their player will likely face adversity and many challenges throughout their youth career. There will be many highs and lows, and our job as parents is to support and encourage them through it all. Miguel was actually cut from his academy select team at age 14 and we reassured him that this unfortunate setback would not define him moving forward. He took that as motivation and worked even harder to achieve his goals. Now, he is a professional soccer player in the MLS!"

Learn more about the roles of St. Louis CITY SC team physicians.

Learn why patient's choose Washington University Orthopedics, request an appointment online or call (314) 514-3500.