Dear Friends,
I hope this finds you all doing very well! The past three months have been an exciting time at Soccer Without Borders. Since it started in 2006, SWB has been an almost entirely volunteer-led effort. To date, more than 250 volunteers have dedicated thousands of hours coaching, mentoring, stuffing envelopes and sorting soccer cleats in the spirit of love and care for under-served youth around the world.
As our work has evolved and we have been able to demonstrate the benefit of our programs in more tangible ways, new doors have opened. Thanks to grants from AmeriCorps' Coach Across America program, Dartmouth College's Dickey Center for International Understanding, and an increase in fund-raising efforts, for the first time, we are proud to announce that we have a team of paid, full-time staff.
This e-mail provides an introduction to three incredible women who are working to make SWB a better program for the youth we work with, and a more sustainable organization to do justice to all of you who have supported our mission in numerous ways.
Thank you all so much for your time and your continued support. I wish you all the best!
Sincerely,
Benwww.soccerwithoutborders.org
|
|
Meet Our New Full-time Staff: Mary McVeigh, Laila Nossier, Myra Sack, My
 | Mary (far left) and Myra (far right) with other volunteers at our office in Granada, Nicaragua
|
Mary McVeigh- Executive Director: Mary McVeigh currently serves as the Executive Director of Soccer Without Borders, having co-founded the Granada, Nicaragua project site in 2008. McVeigh's tireless dedication to SWB's growth over the past several years naturally evolved into a full-time career. Prior to her efforts with Soccer Without Borders, McVeigh earned her Master's degree in Sociology from Lehigh University and served four seasons (2004-2007) as an assistant coach in the Lehigh Women's Varsity Soccer program. Subsequently, she returned to her Alma Mater, Dartmouth College, assistant coaching their Women's Varsity Soccer team for the next two seasons. While a student at Dartmouth herself, (1999-2002), McVeigh left her mark on the Big Green. A two-time first team All-Ivy honoree and an All-America in 2002, McVeigh remains in the top-10 in all six career- and season- scoring categories. Upon graduation from Dartmouth, McVeigh took her soccer expertise and leadership skills to the professional level, playing for the Philadelphia Charge in 2003.  Laila Nossier- Oakland Program Coordinator: Laila graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in anthropology in 2010. While there, she played one year with Cal's club team and in the local Golden Gate Women's Soccer League. She began coaching at Berkeley High School as a college sophomore and continued coaching local youth club teams and briefly with the Olympic Development Program. Looking to continue her passion for youth development, upon graduating she joined SWB's staff as a program coordinator and the girls coach for the SWB Prgram at Oakland International High School girls team. This winter Laila will be leading a new program for younger refugee youth in Oakland ages 8-13. Myra Sack- Capacity Builder: Myra Sack rejoins Soccer Without Borders in her new role as Capacity Builder, after her 2009 stint as a program volunteer with SWB Granada. A recent graduate of Dartmouth College, Myra left quite a mark during her four years in Hanover, as a Scholar All-America selection on the soccer field and a cum laude Government major off the field. In 2008, she co-founded Athletes United, a student-led initiative whose mission is to unite children of the Upper Valley with Dartmouth student-athletes through a free, organized and fun sports league, gaining attention from ESPN.com for her efforts. Earning a post-graduate fellowship from Dartmouth's Dickey Center for International Understanding to work with SWB for 2010-2011, Myra will focus her efforts in the areas of program structure and curriculum development, grant-writing and US outreach, and coordination of SWB Latin American programs.
|
|
Play the Whistle: Reflections on the First Season of SWB Baltimore
by Jill Pardini
 | | Jill and the SWB Baltimore players |
"Coach, it's a hand ball! It's a hand ball!" echoed the voices of my boys in the opening game of the season. My instruction to, "Play until you hear the referee's whistle," went unnoticed and their frustrations swelled. These sixteen boys, who are refugees from Iraq, Nepal, and various countries throughout Africa, had never played in an organized soccer game before. Who knew throw-ins could be so complicated? Why does the ball have to go one full forward rotation on a kick-off before being played backwards? Why does the referee care if our jerseys are tucked in? In many places around the world, the rules of the game are dictated by the players in the game. Equipment is nearly non-existent. Boundaries are debatable. And stops in play are declared by democratic majorities (i.e. larger proportion of players yelling "hand ball"). But in the Central Maryland Soccer Association, our team had much to learn. In its inaugural season, Soccer Without Borders Baltimore's U-16 boys team achieved more successes than their 0-7-2 record might convey. Not only did we work through the fundamental rules of playing league soccer in the United States, but we overcame personal and team challenges along the way. For these boys, no external motivation was needed for them to get excited to play soccer (whether in games or practice). In fact, it was often the reverse. As the coach, I had to pay close attention to my boys getting too excited or too incensed by the soccer-related activities. When they were excited, it manifested in the bench players running onto the field to join the team celebration after a goal, which rendered the referees speechless. When they were upset, it sometimes led to tears, anger, and even the occasional fight. As a soccer coach the impossible task is to try to make your players care. As a soccer coach for SWB Baltimore I am blessed with the challenge of helping my players improve their soccer skills, building team cohesiveness amidst diverse cultures, religions, and languages, and trying to help my players navigate life in the City of Baltimore.
|
|
T.E.A.M. Granada Celebrates UN Day of Peace
Each year, the United Nations tabs September 21st as the International Day of Peace. For the second year in a row, SWB in Granada, Nicaragua has teamed up with Play Soccer, an international umbrella non-profit largely focused in Africa, in support of their annual Global Peace Games. According to Play Soccer, the Peace Games are "grass roots soccer games that take place under the initiative of Play Soccer and are organized by organizations and communities around the world" with a purpose of encouraging "children and youth to share and celebrate the values and skills they learn on the playing field through sport and to find peaceful solutions in their daily lives and communities." Wherever the Peace Games are held,
 | | A Global Peace Games participant signing the manifesto in Granada |
participants are read a statement from the United Nations and asked to sign a manifesto:
I pledge in my daily life, in my family, my work, my community, my country, my region, to:
RESPECT ALL LIFE
REJECT ALL VIOLENCESHARE WITH OTHERS
LISTEN TO UNDERSTAND
PRESERVE THE PLANETCONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNITY
T.E.A.M. Granada held a Global Peace Games 5v5 Women's Tournament in honor of the Day of Peace, with 8 teams signing the manifesto, read by Granada Coaching Director Cesar Morales.
|
|
A Season to Remember in Oakland
The fall season was one to remember for the SWB program at Oakland International High School. More than 75 young men and women from a combined 18 countries participated in the program this fall, with 50 coming at least twice per week.
Some of the highlights from the fall season include the following:
 | | SWB girls team practicing at OIHS |
- The boys finished with an undefeated record, good for first place in the Jack London Soccer League Class 4 level.
- The girls, with 12 new members who had never before played an organized sport, scored multiple goals in 3 straight games.
- On September 29th, thanks to the Soccer Silicon Valley Community Foundation's Kid Zone Program, we took 50 players from SWB Oakland to the San Jose Earthquakes game against the Chicago Fire, marking the first time many of them had attended a professional sporting event in the United States.
- Hamza Hachim, a former player in the program, completed his first season as an assistant coach, taking on more and more responsibilities with the boys team.
We would like to extend a special thank you to all of our volunteer coaches, Adam Blazej, Dave Koken, Bobbie Monzon, and Roger Remera for their help during this season!
|
|
A Few Announcements...
- The application period for Summer and Long-term Internships for 2011-12 will open Dec 1st
- Check out our T.E.A.M. Granada group trips in May (18 and older) and July (under 18).
- You can get more updates on our programs on our new central blog. Have a look for updates on the Guatemala, Uganda and New York City Programs, as well as the latest from our interns!
|
|
|
|
DONATE NOW!
(Click on the Dove)
|
|
