So I've officially been working at my internship for a couple weeks now, and I absolutely love it. My friend, Leigh, and I interviewed a few weeks ago and were given the choice of two jobs: an event programme manager or a league organizer. Both jobs are awesome, but very different. After much deliberation, I decided to do the events job. It involves a lot of hours and a lot of phoning to different sponsorships, caterers, etc., but I thought it would be awesome getting to really see how an NGO operates and getting some experience running big events. I work at the Chris Campbell Memorial Field 4 days a week, which is actually a lot on top of classes, soccer, etc., but so far it's been one of the highlights of my trip.
Words cannot describe what an amazing opportunity I have here, but let me attempt to do that.... So I've told you about CTC Ten Foundation, but what I've learned much more about is the other NGO that essentially merged with CTC Ten to create the incredible place where I work. AMANDLA EduFootball was started a few years ago, in 2006 by Flo and Leo. They both lived in a children's home in Khayelitsha. Many of the kids there have HIV or TB and do not have parents or their parents are not in custody of the children. (Side note: I just met a 14 year old today who was one of the first kids ever on the Western Cape to receive antiretroviral meds when he was much younger, and now he's 14 and doing well.) Flo and Leo realized that the kids didn't really have anything to do after school which made it more likely to get involved in bad things, so they came up with this idea of some sort of soccer based program. (Their motto is "Give Strength to Youth.") Since its creation, the organization has been greatly expanded because it's been so successful. There is much more that can be said about it, but check out their website for yourself to get a better idea! You should seriously take a look- it's very cool.
Everyone I work with- Ryan, Amy, Flo, Shane- is so YOUNG! They're all around 23 or 24 years old. I feel so much younger than them, and I didn't realize how close to my age they actually are. They have all had such amazing opportunities and experiences right out of college. And being so young, they can relate so well to all the kids and teens and young adults in the township who are targeted through the program. It shows you how much of an impact young people can have and how much they can accomplish. Each person has his or her own story.... Shane, for example, is from England. He studied sports management in school and found out about AMANDLA and e-mailed Flo. Last August, he came here as a volunteer for 3 weeks, and then shortly after was offered a position. He said where he grew up is a very much working-class population, and most kids don't go to university- they just do apprenticeships etc. He said that the friends he's in contact with from home are all so amazed by what he's doing, and he said it took a lot of hard work to get here, but most people from his home don't realize that with a little hard work and motivation you can get out of that lifestyle that has become such a pattern from generation to generation. So over the past 6 months, his responsibilities have increased significantly. He works constantly, but loves it, which says a lot!
Last Saturday was the season opening for one of the children's home soccer leagues. This is the league that Leigh will help coordinate. Shane is in charge of the league overall. It caters to all the different children's homes in the Khayelitsha area. We got to go to Athlone Stadium where World Cup teams practiced last year. You can imagine the kids' excitement for being in such a cool atmosphere (and by the "kids", I mean mine). I helped create an obstacle course for the kids that incorporated the Fair Play System. This system encourages sportsmanship, teamwork, and respect in short, and teams earn points for good behavior or lose points for bad behavior throughout the duration of their league. At the end, the team with the best score in the Fair Play wins an even bigger prize than the winners of the soccer itself. It was an EARLY morning, but a great day.
Tonight, I went to my first CPL night (Crime Prevention League). This goes from 8pm until midnight every Friday, and is a chance for older guys to play (20s and 30s, that is). Picture this: 300 guys playing under the lights, techno/house music playing in the background, people dancing around in between, lots of people watching.... It was one of the most fun things I've done here, and I plan on going as many Fridays as I can. I can even play! There is a staff team that I will definitely play on next time I go. Tonight I didn't bring cleats, so I didn't play in the actual league games, but we did play a few friendly matches beforehand, so I played in my bare feet. My feet were completely blackened with dirt by the end of the night.
One of my first events is on Monday, so I'm pretty excited for that! Monday is Human Rights Day, but AMANDLA and CTC Ten want to focus on the responsibilities that go along with those rights. So some of the kids involved in their soccer leagues will be doing community service in the morning, then having lunch and attending workshops in the early afternoon, and finally, playing a soccer tournament in the afternoon. Who knows what I'll end up doing, but part of my job is to interview participants and write a blog about the day, so I will definitely put that link on here once I'm finished.
Oh, and did I mention that a girl is here filming a documentary about the organization? And her main focus is going to be the 24 hour AMANDLA Awareness event, which also happens to be my main responsibility? She keeps teasing me and saying I'm gonna be famous, and I'll definitely be getting some screen time.... Not sure how I feel about that yet!! But I am SO glad that it's happening so people can see what it's really like. There's no way to understand Khayelitsha or the organization without seeing it. There couldn't be a more perfect time for me to be involved here!!
I have a busy week ahead of me, but then I am away for Spring Break starting next Saturday! I can't believe it's already just about time for my trip! I will be camping for 10 days and visiting Zambia, Botswana, Victoria Falls, Okavango Delta, etc. It will be out of my comfort zone since I will be sleeping outside with animals, (let alone CAMPING!) especially in the Delta, so I can guarantee there will be plenty of stories about it... good and bad! HA!
