We know how challenging it has been for our youth to not be able to participate with their friends and teammates in the activities that they love. Social distancing is challenging for us as adults, and we can only imagine how much more difficult it is for our children.
With that said, we want to share a resource to support the remote coaching and mentorship work many of you are doing during this time of social and physical distancing. One of Cal North's partners, Soccer Without Borders (SWB) is organizing a free 5-week challenge. The Stay Home Season starts April 27th (registration deadline is April 24th): https://www.stayhomeseason.org/
The goal of the program is to create a connection between the soccer community, increase youth engagement in remote programming and inspire healthy competition. Participating teams commit to hosting two or three virtual sessions/wk, such as Zoom practices, coach-led team challenges, and other remote program initiatives. For one of the virtual sessions, SWB will send a community-building challenge on Mondays and players have until that Thursday to submit to their coach evidence of having completed the challenge. Throughout the season, teams compete against each other to have the highest percentage attendance rate for virtual practices and completion rates of the weekly challenges. More participation equals more points. Prizes will be provided at the end of the season for winning teams, and professional players from MLS, USL, and NWSL will be involved to offer players motivational messages and support the initiative.
SWB has extended this invitation to all Cal North travel and/or recreational teams of any age! As you may be aware, Soccer Without Borders is a free program for immigrants, refugees and underserved youth with a hub in Oakland and programs through the US and the world. Cal North has been a proud host to SWB for many years and is happy to spread the news about this fun challenge.
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