Unity 4 Orphans’ partner in Mexico hosted their second annual soccer tournament, giving orphaned and vulnerable children the opportunity to learn teamwork, make friends, and receive encouragement.
U4O’s holistic program set includes Play 4 Change, an initiative to help kids be kids and find camaraderie and self-confidence through play. The opportunity to be coached and mentored by loving, kind adults is one that many of the children we serve don’t receive anywhere else.
U4O Provides Safe Spaces for Children to Play and Learn Teamwork
The annual soccer tournament in Tijuana is much more than a sporting event. It embodies an important part of our belief that children need safe spaces to play and grow. Through our partnership with Dunamis, a growing nonprofit in Tijuana, U4O is excited to share transformation stories from this year’s tournament.
We thank God for everything that He is doing, and we put all of our plans, ideas, and needs in His hands. We are serving Him with joy and peace that He is in control.
–Marco Aguilera, Mexico Programs Director
Our partners across the border serve orphanages and community centers, where most of the children have experienced trauma, abuse, or abandonment. They live in the cycle of poverty, and we strive to bring them dignity, hope, and the love of Jesus.
Annual Tijuana Soccer Tournament Helps Kids Build Confidence
Over 120 children in 10 teams played in the soccer tournament, including a group of adolescent boys from difficult neighborhoods. A 12-year-old boy named Santiago comes from a broken family and a rough neighborhood. He arrived in flip-flops–his only pair of shoes–and was amazed when a church member loaned him a pair of their son’s shoes in his size. The team told him how much God loves him, and Santiago felt comfortable enough to share that he doesn’t know how to read. They offered to teach him, and he’s so excited to learn!
We had the opportunity to talk about [sportsmanship] with the kids, to do their best and enjoy the process. We were able to see the Lord working through this, and hope we have a new open door to this rough community to get in and work with them.
–Marco Aguilera, Mexico Programs Director
Two volunteer coaches from one of our partner orphanages are brothers who grew up on the streets. They found healing and success in their own lives and were the perfect mentors to relate to the children on their level. Stories like these show God’s mercy and kindness at work in the lives of the children we serve!
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