Soccer-Child Campus

           I try dabbling in every sport. I in no way excel in one specifically but I like to think that I’m at least somewhat capable (from my tennis forehand to three-point buzzer-beater). So when I arrived in Mfuleni, a township outside the skyline of Cape Town, I was surprised to see a lack in sport. A nearby concrete court with two opposing basketball nets remained empty. A tetherball post never saw the never-ending energy of the youth coming home from school. Instead, two turf fields inhabiting the backyard of Power Child, our workplace for the week, was home to countless children playing a seemingly nonstop match of soccer. It wasn’t a lack of sport but rather a focus of it.  
            Power Child is an NGO originating in Germany. Children in the township use the small campus as a place of learning and comfort, which our Reach Our group strived to maintain throughout the week. While I enjoyed contributing to making lunches and planting a functional garden, I was quickly lured to the pick-up games of soccer. At first I was hesitant, though. I had never acted as anything even close to a camp counselor or babysitter, so approaching forty ten year-olds was initially daunting.

            Sango was the smallest player on my team, but for some reason he took a liking to me. He would pass me the ball despite my lack of know-how and confidence on the pitch. And not surprisingly, some of the other children might have seen my participation as an undertaking rather than pleasure. After gaining a hang of playing left wing and improving the speed of blistered feet, I felt the children warming to me. Eventually our language barrier and difference in age felt miles away.
            At school, pick up matches on cross campus may sometimes form between soccer enthusiasts and close friends. The games at Power Child, though, may only ever occur where soccer rules all else. With only a ball and two nets, a first impression was made that would not have otherwise. I gained respect for the children, who despite difficult situations involving abuse and poverty, welcomed yet another batch of volunteers. At the same time, they hopefully realized that we weren’t so different, even beyond the superficial and disparate soccer skills. Also, I scored twice.

- Doug Steinberg