Education Cameroon Project #12502

Soccer + Life Skills for Hundreds of Youth

by Open Field

Soccer + Life Skills for Hundreds of Youth

Project Report | Feb 24, 2015
2015 Community Soccer League Kicked off on Sunday!

By Justin Forzano and Lobe Wallace | CEO and Director of Community Leagues

Kumba Arsenal FC - one of the U-14 clubs with CFDP

It's 2:00pm on Sunday and coaches and players start to arrive at GPS field, well before scheduled kick off time of 3:30pm. This is an amazing achievement in itself. If you are familiar with the concept of "African time", you know what we mean. The CFDP management team has been on site since early in the morning, arranging the canopy (tent), high table and chairs for distinguished guests, marking the field and hanging nets in the goals, and situating the PA system and cranking the speakers so that the neighbors will know a great event is happening at the field today.

Soon, members of the surrounding community begin to arrive. Supporters of the two clubs playing in the opening match of Kumba's first U-14 league season. Then other community leaders, coaches, supporters and affiliates of CFDP. Finally, Chairman of the Kumba Board of Commissioners, Divisional Delegate of Ministry of Sports and Physical Education, with his entourage. Everything is set for the Opening Ceremony of the first-ever full season of the CFDP Community League and after a few welcome words from the Director of Operations, Diony Collins, pre-match activities begin.

CFDP football (soccer) matches are different. We transform the playing grounds into a place of learning - for both players and spectators. Before kick off, players will run warm-up drills/games based on educational football drills they learned from Coaches Across Continents training last June. The referee will "quiz" players on each team about what they have learned from their coach in training sessions leading up to the match. Players will read motivational statements to the crowd, reinfocring their role as young athletes in the community to be role models, create awareness and promote social change Finally, shaking hands between teams and promoting fairplay throughout the game concretizes the values of CFDP: this game is about more than winning.

The theme for this first season is GENDER EQUITY. Every match will highlight a different component of this crucial social issue, and Sunday's opening game was no different. The league will run from February through May, thanks to the generous support of donors like you and FIFA Football for Hope.

As for the outcome of the opening game between Kumba Lakers FC and St. Peters FC, it was a draw 1-1. But one team will go ahead in the table because of their adherence to CFDP values and our new points system.

None of this is possible without your support. We want to first THANK YOU IMMENSELY for supporting our activities in Cameroon and second invite you to follow along on our blog, social media, and website. Stay connected and see what kind of IMPACT YOU CAN CREATE.

St. Peters FC - a new club created by CFDP coach

Kumba Legend FC - a new team in our community

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Nov 14, 2014
Expanding Soccer Programs with New Leagues

By Justin Forzano | CEO

Collins and Wallace led the Coaches Clinics

Our Youth Enrichment Football League was launched in Kumba in the summer of 2013. We started with a few reluctant coaches and wanted to see how we could incorporate our life skills and health education into competitive soccer. After a few successful attempts and a few failures, too, we found the perfect combination with a balance of learning and play. This gave us the confidence to move ahead with our regional youth league.

In October, we launched our Coaches' Clinics aimed at bringing together amateur coaches and referees, and anyone else who loves soccer, to share with them our new approach to the game. As training workshops continued, more coaches began to see the vision: a holistic approach to youth player development, where there is as great focus on performance on the pitch as their is in the classroom and at home. By the end of the month, we began to see a shift in attitudes of coaches in the three communities where we have planted our roots: Kumba, Mamfe and Ndu. With this new approach, we are creating Community Impact Coaches!

The feedback we got from one of our coaches, Harrison Tetu of Wumjeck F.C. sums it up best:

"The kids are really enjoying the new model. They are seeing improvements in their behaviour and are having the most fun when they are playing the game. They shake hands to show respect to their peers and do not fight with other teams like they used to. We are teaching them so many things through football that they can never learn anywhere else."

As the saying goes in Cameroon, "Long Live the Republic of Cameroon. Long Live CFDP. "

Stay tuned for more exciting updates as we roll out the league in new communities in the Southwest and Northwest Regions.

Coaches got great experience during the practicals

$CFDP Staff take a walk through Kumba \$

CFDP Staff take a walk through Kumba \

Links:

Check out a Video of Your Equipment in Cameroon!

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Jul 16, 2014
2014 Expansion Beyond After School Programs

By Justin Forzano alias K-Man | CEO

Six Teams Will Compete in Kumba's 2nd League Year

Summer is half-way over for us – the holidays are in full swing and we are right in the middle of training Peer Leaders, a new initiative of our Peace Corps Volunteer, Adrian, to promote a more sustainable and engaging approach to youth development. Thanks to your support, we have been able to focus much on improving our after school programs over the last year. And it’s working… More and more school teachers and administrators (and of course, students) want our programs to come to their school!

But we are happy to share with you more about another exciting moment at CFDP… a shift in our social and health education initiative is happening. We are preparing to make some bold moves in the months ahead. And we need your help.

From July 29^th until August 18^th, I will travel around the Southwest and Northwest Regions of Cameroon, working with our staff and partners to revolutionize our approach to community development. We have improved our Youth Enrichment Football League based on lessons learned from the one-year pilot project we ran in Kumba this past year. We’ve found a unique way to take our educational discussions – typical of our after school programs – and infuse them into soccer practices and games with certified Coaches who double as mentors. Of course, as you know with CFDP, girls play too.

In August, we will launch our new youth league model in two communities, Mamfe and Ndu, and lay the groundwork for a regional network to build social infrastructure with youth soccer. It won’t be easy; but our team is ready. The time is now.

Please check out our new project on GlobalGiving. I know that you believe in our mission to leverage the beautiful game as a sustainable platform for community development. If you are inspired and able to give, please don’t hesitate. The time is now. Check out my itinerary for the trip and select a specific activity that you want to fund and let me know what it is. I will be sure to report back to you upon my return. No amount is too small; every little bit helps.

Thanks for your consideration.

Kind Regards,

Justin

David will be one of the Peer Leaders next Year!

Youth who play soccer - stay engaged!

Links:

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