HAVERFORD, Pa. – Over the summer, Haverford College women's soccer sophomore Kelsey Smith had the opportunity to travel to South Africa to witness firsthand the impact that her work with Grassroot Soccer has had in that country. Traveling with a company call WOZA Soccer, Smith got to spend two weeks in Khayelitsha (the second largest township in South Africa) and two weeks in Mtubatuba (outside of Durban on the opposite side of the country).
"I have been involved with Grassroot Soccer since before my freshman year in high school," explained Smith. "Grassroot Soccer is an adolescent health organization that uses soccer to educate, inspire, and motive youth to overcome the health challenges that they face in their communities. I began a fundraising 3v3 soccer tournament at my high school the summer before my freshman year and it has been happening ever since. When I left for college I handed the tournament down to two girls on my high school team who have run it the past two summers."
The program his seen so much success that Smith was able to bring her experiences to Haverford College. "I have also run this same fundraising tournament here on Haverford's campus as a part of Haverford AIDS Service Network (ASN). We ran the tournament during our AIDS Awareness Day on Campus last spring! I have wanted to travel to South Africa to see Grassroot Soccer on the ground since I started working with them and found out about the travel opportunity through WOZA Soccer from someone within Grassroots Soccer."
"This is an organization that I hold near and dear to my heart and have for many years," stated Smith. "Soccer has changed my life in so many ways and it is absolutely incredible to watch it do the same and 10 times more for others. Soccer is not just a sport, it can be used as a meaningful tool to educate and motivate people to be the change in their own lives and communities."
Once arriving in South Africa, Smith had the opportunity to work with Grassroot Soccer (a long established, very successful Sport for Development and Peace organization), Football For Life (a small organization funded by the Swedish National Soccer Team working on girls empowerment through soccer), and the Mtubatuba Football Academy (an all-boys club trying to create good enough soccer players to be able to play in University).
Looking to bring her experiences back to the United States, Smith and her WOZA team helped to create an impact plan that will continue to help the Football for Life club. Football for Life as an all-girls club where the majority of the players do not have sport bras which is a deterrent to the players participating in the sport. Now Smith is looking for the help of the Haverford College campus to help the organization carry out its mission.
"The majority of the club's players do not have sports bras and this deters girls from playing. We are trying to collect as many sports bras as possible. They can be used, worn or stretched out (even if you don't wear it any more it might be helpful to someone who has never had one before!)," said Smith. "I am going to be putting out a box in the Fitness Center to collect as many as possible."