It pretty amazing what you can learn about people when you take the time.

It pretty amazing what you can learn about people when you take the time.
So these past couple of weeks I have spent a lot of time with kids that perform in different dance groups and artists in Khayelitsha. I have spent time with them, but haven’t had a lot of opportunity to really get to know the kids.

Today, I invited all of the kids who performed to come and play soccer at the Football for Hope Centre. It was so great to see how excited they were to be playing on the field. My team was pathetic; we played games similar to King’s Court in Tennis; where the winner continues to play. My team never scored a goal and there were times when we wouldn’t even be on the field for more than a minute and we would get scored on.. PATHETIC.

It was so fun to get to hang out and really talk to the kids. The group in the picture above is called Future Line, they practice everyday after school, and the range in age from 14-21. One of the youngest, 14 year old girls says she wants to be a lawyer, and if that doesn’t work out a dancer. Another kid who was 18 wants to go to art school. It is so great, hearing that kids growing up in the townships have dreams and passion for life.

These kids are born into situations where there are very few opportunities for success. Many kids here don’t graduate from school, never gain solid employment, and are very susceptible to HIV. Today at the centre I was running late and they were waiting inside looking at the photos on the wall that were pictures of some of the interventions we have run. I missed it, but I was told that they were having some pretty deep conversations about HIV. If only I had a way of protecting them, but I these are great kids and I have to believe that they can protect themselves and can stay focused on their future.

That is probably one of the hardest things about working out in these communities, is seeing how there is not a lot of people who have faith or determination to better their lives. So many of the people are unemployed and just sit around all day. First, I could not even imagine that, but so many do not finish all grades of school.
It was just so refreshing today to hear things, like I want to be a lawyer. They also showed me where they rehearsed their dances. It is in a room that is small like the size of two normal sized bathrooms in the US. It continues to baffle me how these kids make the best of everything. I think that is a lesson that everyone should learn.

I am just so thankful that I got to spend the day with these amazing kids/young adults. They have an energy that is just contagious. After we got done playing soccer we when inside and played a ton of different indoor, icebreaker type games; it was really fun. Then I went to the store and got bananas, bread things, and 3 liters of soda, we all had a snack and then it took me 3 trips to get them all home.
One other amazing thing about these kids is that they dance because they love it. The were never in it for the little bit of money we could pay the, or the exposure; they were in it because they loved it and had passion for it. That is why they are the best in Khayelitsha. The passion that they show gives me hope especially because the harsh reality of life in the townships can all too often be overwhelming.

See ya soon,

Sarah

Thats What it is All About

There are very few experiences in my life that can top what I have been a part of the last couple of days. It is so funny how we sometimes get caught up in the “hoopla” of events/work and forget the real reason we do the work we do. The last few days have been the greatest reminder for me of why I wanted to come and work in Africa. I have spent time with the most amazing people and children to the point that there overwhelming sadness that it is over and a harsh realization of the struggles that many of the people face on a daily basis.

Last night, I was taking home a group of DJ’s that we have used a lot in the last week and one of them said that he wished he was a white man because how easy his life would be. The statement literally shook my entire being. When I got out of the car all three of them hugged me and said they were going to miss me. There are so many times that I wish that there was more I could do!!

In Khayletisha you look around and see the living conditions and its sad but in the last couple of days, it has really HIT me. I cannot even explain the intensity of the emotions of sadness, concern, passion, excitement and appreciation that I have experienced since Thursday. On Thursday night, the teams that were playing in the tournament had an open forum discussion about “life” and their stories. The first girl that shared, talked about how her mom had passed away and that when she hears other people talking about their mom, it makes her wonder if you mom would be proud of her. At the end of her story she shared how she likes to think that her mom would be so proud of her for being a part of the tournament. I don’t think that there is a person in the room that wasn’t proud of her!!

The next kid shared about how he had lost both parents in one year and how he has overcome this challenge; “living a good life”. It is so amazing the strength that these kids have and how they are resilient to the world around them. A major highlight for me of the evening was when an 18 year old girl from Lesotho shared about being HIV positive. She said there was a time in her life when she started to act like a “women” and acting in a way she thought a woman should act. She concluded her story by staying “if only I would have known myself – before it was too late”. There are almost no words that can describe the atmosphere of the room. One of the leaders of the Brazilian delegate team started to cry. I was so moved that I went and sat on the floor by her. Even though we don’t speak the same language and I had no idea why she was crying, I made a connection with her, that I will never forget.

At the end of the forum, one of the Brazilian players said that his life story started today,as after hearing all of these stories, his life really hasn’t been that hard. I still get chills when I think about!! What an amazing experience for these 15-18 year old kids! Thursday night was the perfect reminder of what this weekend was about. Yes, I was really excited about the opening and all of the excitement around it, but it helped me to remember that the most important thing is the KIDS!

Friday was really busy we had a lot of GRS board members and some important possible donors in town, a graduation and rehearsals of all of the performers for the weekend. It was a very hectic day but watching the groups perform at the field and seeing the excitement in their eyes was amazing. The best part was when the people from FIFA and streetfootballworld were discussing Saturday’s activities and the group called Heavenly Cortez and Angels of God were practicing the national anthem and everyone stopped what they were doing and listened.

The big thing about Friday was the World Cup Draw, they closed the major street in downtown Cape Town and built a big screen TV so everyone could watch. It was a large event for the city, but I didn’t go, I actually didn’t even watch it. I was out at the Football for Hope Centre with GC (our site coordinator) trying to organize the furniture that had been delivered by a carpenter in Khayletisha. Even though I missed the draw, I had so much fun!!!

GC is going to be the caretaker at the centre for the first month so he has to stay in the caretaker flat at the top of the centre. I had this terrible sense of concern when I was leaving the centre at ten and leaving him there. However, the centre had a perimeter fence with all night security staff and police. The centre even without all of that is a safer place to be than his actual house. I honestly feel blessed because I have always known the conditions our coaches live in, but I have never really had more than a superficial concern or sadness about it, until now.

Saturday, was so busy. The opening ceremony went very well! I was so excited for everyone who put a lot of work into it. The performances groups that I have been working with, nailed their routines. I don’t think I sat down until about 3 in the afternoon. It was so hot, that when I came back to town, I just went for a little swim in the ice cold water and it felt amazing. So many amazing things happened on Saturday, but Sunday was probably the best day of the whole week.

I got to the Football for Hope Centre at about nine, the atmosphere was so much more relaxed, everyone was doing what they enjoyed doing and having fun. The soccer games were amazing, a lot of them ending in shoot outs. For the semi-finals the stands were full of the local community, cheering on the home team Grassroot Soccer. For someone who loves being a fan of sports, it was beautiful. The crowds were singing and screaming, I can’t imagine what the World Cup will be like.

I have really enjoyed working with the performers so much over the last couple of weeks. I was so excited when all they were performing and watching the reactions of the crowd. When one of the groups were performing and the crowd was loving it, one of the guys that works for streetfootballworld came up to me and said “this is for you.” It was perfect!

Another special aspect of Sunday, was the handing out of the trophies to the winners. One of my tasks was to find a local artist to make trophies. I found a guy name Martin who is gifted in pottery design. He made 8 plates for the delegates, a fair play trophy and the winning trophy. They were beautiful! What was so amazing about this, is that we needed him to make a different winning trophy and we gave him about a week. He sent me and SMS (text message) that told me how he has cancer and this was the first job he had taken in a year and he had just had surgery. He said that he would try his best to get it completed by Sunday.

On Saturday night, I thought to myself why not ask Martin “Clay Guy”, to come and watch the final soccer games, performances and get to see his trophies handed out. I asked the people from streetfootballworld, and they agreed would be a great idea. Not only, did he come and watch, but he got to sit in the VIP seating area and hand out the Winning Trophy to the winning team. When I saw Martin on the field handing out the trophies it reminded that moments like this are what it is all about.

I got to exit the stadium walking with the FUTURE LINE dance group singing “Oh Happy Day”, there was no better finale for me of the weekend then that. They kids said how much they would miss me, but I don’t think they know how much I will miss seeing them or how highly I thought of all of them.

For me, I have made some great friends with the people from streetfootballworld and really enjoyed working with them. I had so much fun and laughed a lot. It really has been a wonderful couple of days!!

With Love,

Sarah

Huge week in the fight against HIV/AIDS

Hey everyone, I just wanted to share a little about my week and weekend with you. On Sunday morning, please get on google(search engine) and type in, FOOTBALL FOR HOPE, Grassrooot Soccer, Khayletisha South Africa. That way you can see all of the news/press that we got over the weekend and you can read all about it.

I hope that everyone is doing well. I am so excited for this weekend and have been doing so much work that I have been running all over Cape Town for the last two weeks. Last weekend at the Football for Hope Centre in Khayletsha we had the community opening, it went great. I was actually crying when one of the best performance groups came walking down the street singing “Oh Happy Day”. It so amazing to see how passionate these kids are about their dance and I have spent so much time with them the last couple of weeks I can’t wait to see them perform throughout the weekend!!

On December 1st, 2009 (World Aids Day) Nike launched their RED CAMPAIGN. This campaign is NIKE’s corporate social responsibility pitch to help in the Fight Against HIV/AIDS. A small part of this campaign is that they are selling red shoelaces and part of the proceeds go to organizations that use football in the fight against HIV and Aids. Because of a connection Grassroot Soccer has with NIKE we receive part of the proceeds from the sale of each pair shoe lace. Currently, at NIKE Town in London they are running NIKE based GRS video’s on loop, http://inside.nike.com/blogs/nikesoccer/2009/11/30/fighting-hivaids-through-soccer, please check them out, and buy the NIKE “Red Shoelaces”. Buy (Red) Laces

Additionally, here in Cape Town, on December 1st, we held (I organized) a Voluntary Testing Counseling Tournament from 11:00-3:00. This is a tournament where kids play in soccer games, participate in SKILLZ CORE (grassroot soccer curriculum) activities and have the opportunity to test themselves for HIV. In 5 hours we tested 124 people (including myself) for HIV and no one came back HIV Positive. AMAZING!! It was a hectic and amazing day!! I learned so much about how to run one of these tournaments and was blessed/excited that so many people tested in such a short amount of time.

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are some of the most exciting days I have ever had. There are so many VVIP coming, the president of FIFA, a bunch of princes and princess from this area, the president of South Africa, and the Chancellor of the US embassy here, just to name a few. It is going to be an amazing weekend and I am so happy that I am in Cape Town to be a part of it. Currently, there are 7 delegate teams here from all over Africa and one from Brazil. These teams have been site seeing and getting to know each other for the last couple of days, and on Saturday and Sunday they play in a soccer tournament to celebrate the opening of the centre. It is going to be a lot of work, pressure, but totally worth it.

It is so amazing to see this whole opening come together. For the last year people have been working on so many different aspects of this opening and the centre itself.This is going to be amazing. I will write ya’ll soon and let you know what happens.
See ya soon,

Sarah