Written by, Alison, La Mariposa Intern
Thanks to La Mariposa guests’ generous donations, we were able to complete the fence surroundingthe field in San Juan. On Sunday March 6th, the fence was effective in intercepting countless swift shots from going into the road from the ten teams who showed up for our “lightning round” soccer tournament. Thanks to the help from two of La Mariposa’s Spanish teachers Kinema and Marlin, the soccer tournament had an amazing turn-out. Approximately 60 players ranging in age from 13 to 19 years old from the neigbourhood of San Pedro in San Juan participated in this day-long event. I was stunned by the talent and speed these kids brought to the game! There were a few players in particular who amazed on-lookers, including one boy who was as quick as lightning, his two legs bending and gliding as if they were made of rubber. His play was super fast and accurate. Another boy was completely unfazed during one game when his trainer completely fell apart. He promptly called over to his friend to switch one of his trainers for his useless one. He played the rest of the game wearing two entirley different shoes. By the end of the blistering hot day, the last teams standing were tired and sweaty, but happy to take home their prizes. All in all the day was a complete success, and it was great to see kids playing in a tournament who normally would not have had such an opportunity.
We are continuing our work in the surrounding community by hosting more soccer tournaments (to include girls and youth in marginalized communities), and helping to create more leagues and build soccer fields. Therefore, if anyone has any used youth size indoor soccer shoes, futsol soccer balls (size 4), jerseys, goalie equipment, etc… please bring it down with you. Furthermore, we are looking to expand into basketball and volleyball leagues, so type of equipment could be highly valuable to us in the future. All donations (monetary or otherwise) are greatly appreciated!
Awesome Alison, only a month since I left and you did it, so glad to see that the fence was built! Well done.
Fantastic! What a great thing to do! I know the kids probably loved the chance to compete that this work made possible.
soy marlin profesor de la escuela y gracias por todos aquellos que ayudaron a construir la malla …………. mil gracias