I go for Hawthorn because it's my Mum's team, and thankfully she made the right choice - her family all go for Richmond or Collingwood (my great-great uncle was a dual Collingwood premiership player in 1902-03). My old man's family don't really follow the footy, but he was a Melbourne supporter, and my Step-Dad's family are all fanatical Carlton. When I plunked for the Hawks, it was right at the the end of our golden era, and while I can't remember 88 or 89, 91 was the first GF I remember watching (I wanted James Morrissey to win the Norm Smith - I had his number on my back because we have the same surname). I had to endure the wilderness years as I was growing up, and I remember how genuinely scared for our survival I was in 96, with the worst part being that as I was 13-14 at the time, there wasn't anything I could do about it because I couldn't afford to buy a membership. Thankfully we pulled through, and look where we are now (with me able to afford a membership too!).
This happens often, that whenever someone asks me who I support, and I tell them Hawthorn, they make some snide comment about "bandwagon" fans. I know that's not true, because even when it was not fashionable to be a Hawthorn supporter, I was well-known for my pride in the club that always seemed to lose, whether it was the shit I copped at school in 95 (when we only avoided the wooden spoon because Fitzroy still existed), to going into work in 06 and finding a "Go Dees!" sign plastered over the register after a heavy loss (how has that tide turned!).
But what I really love about the HFC is that I've been able to share my passion with someone else. I failed with one of my brothers, as his Dad got his Carlton claws into him, and my other brother doesn't follow the footy (only a nominal Hawthorn supporter), but I was able to make sure that my sister followed the brown and gold, and she hasn't looked back since. She even made sure that our niece, the daughter of the nominal Hawthorn supporting brother, has had a Hawthorn bomber jacket since she was only a couple of months old (and she is yet to experience a year when Hawthorn aren't premiers!).