On the field, Houston Dynamo striker Kai Kamara looks carefree and happy. But in his past he seldom felt that way. Born and raised in Sierra Leone, Kamara experienced the fear and helplessness involved in the country's civil war, which started in 1991, lasted 11 years, and caused an estimated 2 million deaths.
Kamara lived with his siblings and his aunt because Kamara's mother, his lone caretaker, moved to America before war broke out in the hope of bringing her family with her. For months at a time, violence raged in Sierra Leone. "There were times that I didn't think about it, and there were times I remember crying," Kamara said. "I'd wonder out loud if I'd ever make it out alive." The war prevented Kamara from attending regular school. "It came to the point where I got used to [gun fire] — I used to run and hide under the bed. After awhile, though, it became like music to my ears," Kamara said.
In 1999, Kamara and his family were able to move to Gambia and escape violence. In October 2000, he finally made the move to the United States, where he found his mother, then working in a casino in California. In America, Kamara began playing soccer seriously when he realized the sport could earn him a college scholarship.
"I played, but not organized soccer [in Sierra Leone]. I was always one of the smaller players among my family — my brothers were always really good and among the best," Kamara said. "I didn't really start playing until I got here, and I didn't get big until I got here. That's when I began eating hamburgers." Kamara excelled at Cal State Dominguez Hills, where he caught the eye of then Galaxy coach Sigi Schmid. After being drafted by Schmid in 2006 for the Columbus Crew, Kamara made his way to the Houston Dynamo, where he has begun to flourish. Last year, Kamara was called up to the Sierra Leone national team, bringing him back to his homeland. "I cried, I cried as I stood there, listening to the national anthem. I just cried — no one else in my family has done that, represented Sierra Leone — I just cried."