Last year, as part of their Global Assists program presented by Simple, the Portland Timbers, in cooperation with One World Futbol, sent large shipments of green ultra-durable soccer balls to Guyana, Mozambique, Tanzania, Honduras, Burundi and Uganda.
Earlier this year, all the balls arrived at their destinations and, in the case of Mozambique, some of them have already gone out onto the soccer pitch.
"The [Peace Corps] volunteers love them," said third-year Peace Corps Mozambique volunteer Colleen Huysman, who has distributed the One World Futbol soccer balls there. "If you're a volunteer and you have a soccer ball, you're a hero."
One World Play Project, was founded in 2010 to bring the power of play to millions of youth who don't even have soccer balls in their communities. The organization produces special, ultra-durable soccer balls specifically designed for use where traditional balls get destroyed easily.
Since launching the Global Assists program in 2014, the Timbers have donated over 120 such balls through their partnership with One World Futbol.
In Mozambique, Peace Corps volunteers receive four-day training sessions through Grassroot Soccer, a non-profit that develops unique soccer-focused curricula targeting HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and health issues.
When they return to their communities, the Peace Corps volunteers and their Mozambican counterparts use the Grassroot Soccer curriculum and One World Futbol soccer balls to teach members of their community about these issues in a fun, positive, and interactive way.
"The Grassroot Soccer training is very practical and it gives people something tangible that they can go back and implement right away," said Huysman. "Since these last two trainings [in September and March], we've heard that 10 volunteers have already started interventions [in their communities]."
