Hassocks Junior Football Club - provides footballing activities to over 300 youth players from Hassocks and the surrounding communities - recently donated all their previous football kit to children and young people in Ghana, Africa. The Street to School project where football plays a big part for children in helping them access education and healthcare is called Akwaaba Volunteers. Gordon Macleod and his family, who live in Hassocks, personally delivered the kit on behalf of the club.
Akwaaba Volunteers have been operating in Ghana since 2016, working with over 1000 young people and families in the local community. Jordan Palmer, cofounded the project, said, “Our main aim is to Brighten the future of the next generation, alleviate poverty and create better opportunities in life for underprivileged children and disadvantaged communities in Accra.” The project gives children and young people who want to play sport access to education, health care or good nutrition.
One of the Hassocks Juniors U14 football coaches took five large bags of kit out to the project in Ghana, thanks to the BA Community Branch who provided free excess baggage. Gordon also offered some training and support to the under 13s team and coaches while they were out there. This was a great opportunity for junior footballers in Accra to learn from a junior football coach from the UK, but also for the coach to learn from them. Coach Gordon said: “I was inspired by the skills, quality of play and dedication of these young footballers, who appreciate every opportunity they get to play football.”
He also found it moving to see how much the young people appreciated being given a kit and wanted to acknowledge the important work done by the project and co-founders King Boateng and Jordan Palmer who give children in poverty opportunities to learn and thrive through playing football. He comments: “It was also great for coaches and players back in Hassocks to see their kit go directly to the children who need it most. The kit was so popular that even children who don’t currently play football wanted to join in so that they could also have their own Hassocks football kit!”
Hassocks Junior Football Club Chairman, Stuart Doyle says: “Everyone at Hassocks Juniors is very proud of the work that we do as a club and it’s great to see disadvantaged children like those attending the Akwaaba Volunteers project benefitting from football.” He adds: “We would like to thank coaches, parents and players for their kind donations of kits and boots.” To find out more about Akwaaba Volunteers and the street to school football project, see: www.akwaabavolunteers.org.uk – If you would like to support a child through sport and education (£12 a month) you can contact the project founders via the website.