Soccer & Life Skills for 100 Kids in Haiti

Our last report dates from the beginning of March already, and we´re happy to write you this new report about the last three busy months.

While the first six months of the project can be seen as the ´introduction´ of the program; focussing on identifying problems and starting up the program, the last three months can be described as entering a ´second phase´ of the project. The way in which this second phase differs from its previous part, is that after having settled and started the implementation, the team can now start the evaluation of the program next to its implementation. This evaluation results in a diagnosis of the strengths and weaknesses of the program and its implementation in Haiti. This information is necessary to adapt the program and improve the impact we have on the lives of the children.

An example of how the evaluation caused positive change in this second phase of the project is the strengthening of our team. We learned we could improve the transfer of the methodology and the foundation´s culture better, and focussed on that. Another result was realizing once more how the harsh reality of the children in Haiti works against them during their day to day life. Low access to healthcare, shortage of food and water, no space to play, children doing adult´s work, and a bad family relationship are all part of the reality of the children. Luckily, the evaluation also provided us with strengths of the local context that aid us in improving our impact on changing this harsh reality. We found great Haitian strengths in their spirits and spirituality, their love for music, their willingness and moreover the way the Haitians are used to teamwork and working together as a society. 

So in this second phase, we have started to take this diagnostics in to account and adapt the methodology more and more to the Haitian reality. But that´s not the only important thing that happened. For the children, the most important event of the program was held: the Fútbol Más League. In the methodology, the league is used as a means of putting in practice the resilience-based lessons learned in an adverse situation (a league, where one is tested to his limits in various ways). For the children however, the league is a day of celebration, a day where they will meet new friends, strengthen their current friendships, play, dance, and thus change their adverse reality if only for a day.

For them, this great championship starts at the part of the nomination. During the nomination, the ten children whom earned most green cards in a set period will be selected to represent their age category during the league. In Haiti, the age category exist of many children, which for the Fútbol Más team was a challenge. They thought that because of the fact that only ten children would be selected to play, the remaining 20 children would be unhappy. And thus they decided to invent new ´nomination categories´. Now, the 10 children with most green cards would play football, the next 10 would represent the age category in a specific dance, and the next 10 would be in charge of a specific task during the league (from a special cheering tasks to field preparation). This invention had a rather funny impact. Apart from the fact that it was a huge success and that the children did not feel that they ´lost´ when being nominated for one of the three categories, there was a young girl that after her nomination was notably sad. The project leader went to her and asked what was wrong. The girl then answered: I wish I was in the dancing team instead of being nominated for the football team!! Of course she was granted her wish, and thus everyone was happy with their nomination!

We could explain you how the league was a success from an organizational, methodological, and participative point of view, but we feel that there is a better way to show you how you, by being a donor to this program, have a positive impact on the lives of these children. We prepared a video for you and invite you to watch it from different points of view (don´t worry, you can easily watch this video ten times without getting bored). Imagine first, how it would feel to be present at such a league for a child that has literally never played such a match or experienced an event like this. Imagine how they felt nervous in the weeks (!) before the league. How they woke up on the league day and experienced chanting the national anthem with their group, being cheered by a big group of people, and playing this ´extremely important´ match.

Then secondly, watch it again and think how the parents feel about seeing their children playing. The parents who were asked to grant permission for their children to participate in the Fútbol Más program six months ago and were then engaged to actively participate in this extracurricular (definitely another ´first time in their lives´ too) event, with and for their children. In the past six months they will have experienced a positive change in their children´s behaviour and happiness, and they themselves have learned about the importance of play, the process of how their children grow up, and how they can be positive parents. Now, during this league, they experience this on first hand. Imagine what they felt when watching their children be nervous before the league and later while they were dancing, playing, cheering…!

And last, but not least, imagine how the Fútbol Más team felt during the league. Months of work, trying to build up a program in this hard environment. And then finally, they see the children and their complete families demonstrating an unseen happiness.

We once more thank you for your participation, and hope you feel we are doing what you hoped we´d do with your donations, and more! At the same time, we would like to inform you that our work is not done yet. In order to give this project a sustainable impact and continue working in the next year(s), we are still trying to increase our funds. We look forward to informing you about our work in the upcoming months!

The Fútbol Más team. 

Video The Futbol Mas Haiti League

Green cards, laughter and more goals!

 Even though it has just been two months since the last report, so much has happened in Haiti that we already happily present you this new update! In the last report we wrote you that from September to December, we planned the expansion of Fútbol Más to the new school and gave the children there a first glimpse of the program that would hopefully be changing their lives soon.

We are pleased to inform you that the ´match has now truly begun´!

Two months after the arrival of those ´unknown people´ to their school who talked about green cards and soccer classes, the children can now look forward to classes and wake up knowing that today will be the day they´ll have class again! For them to have this opportunity is already unimaginably great, but right now; even more so. Unfortunately, the country currently is having problem with the elections, which causes the society to be unstable. The classes, built on positive reinforcement, offer the children the opportunity to really disconnect, feel safe, enjoy and be themselves for a moment. The classes started on the twelfth of December, a very important date for the Haitians since it was on the twelfth of December 2010 that an earthquake devastated the country and left many homeless (the very reason that Canaan, the place where the classes are given, came to existence: many people fled there).

We already explained you a little bit about how we use the green card: as a ways of reinforcing positive behaviour. In one of the first classes, a funny situation occurred after the use of this green card (tarjeta verde), which was a perfect example of how it can bring joy to the children and teach them about values. During one of the days´ exercises, a short match was played. One of the players during this match, had her shoelaces untied. She however, did not notice this, also not after a boy repeatedly yelled it at her (she was too focussed!). This boy, from the opposing team, then took the matter in his own hands. He ran to her, stopped her, and started tying her shoelaces right there, during the match. The professor saw this, and rewarded the player with a green card, and explained why to everyone (part of the use of this card). Then one moment later, when he turned around and started the match once more, he found only two children running ?! What was going on: all the other kids were untying and tying the shoes of other children! The following minutes were filled with laughter!

We thank you once more for bring such joy to the children and giving them this possibility!

Well; what else has happened since the beginning of December?

1. The two Chilean professionals with experience in the methodology arrived, set up an office, and started to train the local professors in the green card methodology.
2. The materials were brought to the school and the field was painted. You might see this as just small details, but in reality it is not. For the children this is a significate and positive change. From one day to another, they suddenly have materials and a soccer field on their school with the promise of upcoming classes!
3. After this, the teachers of the school were given classes about the methodology and were taught about the changes that the teachers will be noticing in the children in the months to come.
4. The first meeting with the parents took place and was attended by many parents! This was also the first meeting that the Chilean teachers gave in the local language: Creole. The topics of this meeting were: the objectives, methodology, what they could expect, and the participation that is expected from them.
5. The training of the ´young-leaders´ started. This is a very important part of the methodology. In this methodology, adolescents who demonstrate leadership are detected by the professors and are motivated to become the next generations’ leaders. If they are willing to be, they will be trained to become resilience-trainers and are taught teaching skills, the methodology, leadership and more.

When asking Sara -a young leader that just started her training- about why she wanted to participate as a future example to the other children, she said the following: ´I would like to explain that I love Fútbol Más. You know why? Because It does not only help your body and hygiene, but also in my and their development. I would like to see that they (the children) love me as much as them (the trainers), they seem to appreciate it so much and I love that. I would love to be the future of soccer for them.´….´The green card is important because then everybody is happy and work as a team, when you earn one it makes you even more motivated. Greetings to all the other children in the other countries!´

In the upcoming weeks the team in Haiti will organize an activity with the teachers, a second workshop with the young leaders and a new training in the methodology for the teachers! We are looking forward to present you more updates in the upcoming months!

Links:

• http://www.futbolmas.org