Project Launch:

With limited recreational opportunities for youth in rural El Salvador and thus having few positive outlets in which to occupy their time, young people are more susceptible to become involved with gangs and engage in sexual activity. To address gang involvement and teenage pregnancy, a local Peace Corps Volunteer helped organized a Sports Committee that implemented a youth soccer tournament in Santa Paula, El Salvador. The tournament lasted for nearly the entire duration of summer vacation and consisted of three brackets of teams; girls (open to all ages), young boys (6-13 years old), older boys (14-20). The majority of the committee members were young adults who learned valuable leadership skills and the importance of responsibility and accountability from being involved in this project. The kids who competed in the tournament had a great summer, stayed out of trouble, and learned important life-long lessons about teamwork.