Project Launch:

A three-day camp was held by Peace Corps volunteers and a local NGO (Grass Roots Soccer) that taught approximately 35 youth (ages 6-19) about HIV prevention through soccer exercises. The grant not only allowed for camp materials and food to be available but the purchase of shin pads and soccer balls. The Batey youth responded well to the Dominican-Haitian leaders who were approximately the same age and who had experienced many of the same issues. It was evident that with each day the confidence and knowledge of discussing HIV/AIDS and play sports drastically increased. The proud smiles when receiving a certificate of completion showed how important this camp was especially since the majority don’t receive any positive support from their parents. By the end of the camp their was a noticeable boost of unity within the community. The Escojo youth leaders evolved into responsible and respected leaders within this community and an appreciation for this newly founded program.

 

MamaMalta supports the Escojo Mi Vida group of Jonathan Santiago in Haiti. He currently works in extremely impoverished Haitian communities with a group of 16 youth trained in HIV/AIDS education. Jonathan has used sports activities to teach his youth about teamwork, support, and goal setting. He has also used sports equipment as incentives for youth volunteer (200+ hours). The grant money will be used to purchase soccer equipment (cleats and shin pads) to improve his Escojo soccer initiative focusing on HIV/AIDS. He is looking to integrate his trained youth into a program called Grass Roots Soccer started by American NGO. The goal of this program of this program is to increase the knowledge of HIV/AIDS transmission and prevention, encourage leadership, goal setting, and planning, and expand interest and participation of community youth who were not previously involved. The idea is to train these sponsored youth to pass on this knowledge to adults and children alike.