Project Launch:

Soccer is a fundamental part of life in El Salvador but not everyone has equal opportunities to enjoy it. The average adolescent female living in rural El Salvador is very busy with daily activities essential to her family’s survival, leaving little, if any, time to devote to leisure activities. In 2010 several Peace Corps Volunteers united to bring 50 young women from the cantones of Ciudad Dolores in El Salvador together to participate in an all–girl soccer clinic. With a $495 grant from World Connect’s Kids to Kids Program, the soccer clinic participants received technical instruction and learned the value of leadership and sportsmanship, lessons that not only applied on the field but off the field as well. In running these clinics, the Peace Corps Volunteers aimed to clear up several common cultural misconceptions regarding females and exercise and to inspire the young women to pursue healthy choices in their adult lives. The goal of this project was to help young females realize their personal strengths and potential in life through futból. Although the instruction lasted for only a day, the lessons learned and the friendships build will last a lifetime.