Empower 4 Mozambique coaches to teach 100 in rugby

It seems to be an obvious statement. Education is key. The more and more ADEDAR continues here in Mozambique, the more and more this statement is even more true than before. Our trip to Kenya in November was amazing, but the education hasn't stopped after that.

June 17 we are going to Johannesburg to watch and meet the rugby community for girl's rugby in South Africa. Crelia and Nelio are going with Mandy to make these connections, maybe be able to pick up some trainings nearby, and bring back to Mozambique more of what we need to make rugby grow better, stronger, and bigger. 

Crelia has her own team in Mathemele, under 14, under 12, and under 10. She is also training the senior mens team of Chamanculo, something the men there asked for! Her time in Kenya has made her a stronger asset to ADEDAR for sure. 

Nelio has really been concentrating on girls playing rugby in his neighborhood of Hulene. His club in Hulene is the strongest team we have. Has all levels of rugby and the most players, boys, girls, under 10 up to seniors. This hasn't been an easy task, but he has put the importance in his heart and made it his own passion. 

We are looking forward to our trip to Johannesburg come June 17. Please help us make it possible and continue to donate to ADEDAR for opportunities such as this!

We made it to Kenya. We played. We observed. We learned. We cheered. It was awesome! 

We definitely ran into some challenges during the trip: airport giving us problems, a coach here and there not showing up or us not knowing training was cancelled. BUT, we also ran into some awesome surprises. We met Shamas Rugby Foundation, which is similar to ADEDAR, but bigger, a bit more holistic, and in Kenya. And from them we were able to learn a lot on how to make ADEDAR more holistic in how we approach rugby and development. They had a camp going on for the week we were there, and we definitely took back some great ideas from that. 

We played with KCB Rugby Club, U20s and the women's team. It was so nice to play in grass versus our typical sand here in Mozambique. We got to experience different coaches, play with different players, and learned from them all. 

Nelio and Crelia had never left Mozambique before, so they were pretty giddy the whole time. From the moment we got in the bus in Maputo, to the plane in Johannesburg, to landing in Nairobi, finding our AirBnB, experiencing the craziness of Nairobi, to seeing rugby stores and rugby being something the general population knows about. I think they were ready to take it all in. 

During the week we also got to go on a half day safari in the Nairobi National Park, making it their first time ever seeing giraffes, rhinos, crocodiles, lions, etc. We visited the Elephant Orphanage and watched the babies get fed and roll around in the mud. 

At the end of the time there, we went to watch the Safari 7s tournament held annually in Nairobi for the provinces of Kenya with some international teams invited. They were pretty excited to see the Portugal 7s team play, sneaking in pictures when they could. 

The overall experience was 100% positive. We are back now in Mozambique, and we are already applying what we learned in Kenya to our trainings and helping our players grow. I'm working on putting together a video about the whole trip, so stay tuned!!! 

Two coaches for ADEDAR have been working hard to get their passports. They got them!!! We originally were going to head to Kenya for this trip Sept. 24 to Oct. 5. Somewhere I saw the dates for the Safaricom 7s that goes on in Nairobi and that is happening Nov. 9-11 this year. With that knowledge, we decided to change the date. We are now going to head out Nov. 1 and come back on the 12th. We'll fly out of and back to Johannesburg (taking the bus to Jo'burg from Maputo). We will get a full week of training plus some, and hopefully a game. Then the following weekend will be going to watch the Safaricom 7s! 

We are currently talking to Nelio's school director and getting that sorted out for him to miss school. Packing list has been made. And I will be setting up times to meet with the parents this month!

I want to thank you again for your support and donation towards Empower 4 Mozambique Coaches to teach 100 in rugby. Now I want to let you know where we are.

All in all, we did not quite make it to the $7000 goal, we got to $2,676 which to me is AMAZING! That number means ADEDAR can take at least 1 coach to Kenya, it's almost enough for 2! (You can still donate if you want to help get that second with us). (https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/mission-mozambique-rugby-coach-development/)

To let you know where we are in the process. ADEDAR coaches have been working on getting their passports. We have looked at dates of when to go, and it looks like the last week in September to the first week of October. What is also exciting about that, Kenya puts on a huge 7s rugby tournament in Nairobi, the Safaricom 7s, and we will be there to watch all of that.

Due to only being able to take one coach at the moment, ADEDAR has chosen 1 of our female coaches, Crelia. We will be buying our tickets to and from Kenya in July (meaning we have until July to raise a bit more to take a male coach with us also!) 

Crelia has been playing with ADEDAR since the beginning. Her growth in the game and in her confidence is evident. She started off being scared on the field, but continued coming, listening to her coaches, and becoming one of the best tacklers on the field in Mozambique. She has now started her own team in Mathemele, just on the outskirts of Maputo, where she has about 100 players of her own. She will soon be helping out a new team in Nkobe also! This experience and training in Kenya will be an amazing opportunity to be able to coach all those players and really help grow the game in Mozambique!

Thanks again so much for all your support towards this exciting trip/opportunity!