Mission Statement

Changing lives, one soccer ball at a time:

I started this project on a whim – with no expectations, without a whole lot of direction, and without much help. Over the past couple months, I’ve been blessed to see firsthand how amazing the game of soccer is and just how powerful a soccer ball can be. It has the ability to transcend boundaries in race, gender, and religion. It can bring complete strangers together. But perhaps the ball’s greatest quality is in its ability to provide hope…hope of a better future. I can’t even begin to describe how much this project has done for me personally. I’ve seen places and landmarks that I had never even dreamt about witnessing in my lifetime, not to mention all the genuine interactions I’ve had with people who share the same passion for the game as me. It’s true when they say everyone has a story, you just need to be willing to listen. Sure, I’ve made mistakes, I’ve gotten lost, I’ve been scared, but I have no regrets – because it has all been worth it. I wouldn’t be where I am today without those experiences.

That’s why, now, I’m curious what this project can do, not for me, but for others. I still get just as happy to kick a ball today as I did the first time I ever did, and I want everyone else to be able to feel that. With this website and this project as my platform, I want to make a difference in the world. My plan is to visit developing countries and give out soccer balls to children in need. I might be setting my sights too high, but the dream is to hand-deliver 1000 soccer balls and run clinics at orphanages in every single corner of the world. There’s so much need out there, and I’m trying my best to use my time and my talents to affect as many people as I can. In the end, I’m just trying to use the game to inspire other people. If I can change just one life and put a smile on the face of just one single child, I can walk away from this project content. They say that travel is the only thing you can buy that makes you richer and in that same light, I’m confident that in giving, we receive…we receive something much greater than any materialistic item, an award much richer than anyone could ever imagine. We get to walk away knowing  that we made someone smile, that we gave someone hope when the whole world had given up on him or her, and ultimately, that we changed a life. Changing lives, one soccer ball at a time.