Look Who Earned "Feature of the Month" Status

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Congratulations to all these Catawissan Girls! So proud of you.

We Think Not, Hurricane Ida

In November of 1998, Hurricane Mitch trampled the Atlantic Coast of Central America leaving disaster in its wake. Nicaragua, already the Western Hemisphere's second poorest country (give it up for Haiti at the #1 spot), was left with $1 billion worth of damage, primarily in the agricultural sector which traditionally provides a majority of the country's exports. It washed out roads and destroyed bridges throughout the region. Heavy rains instigated a mudslide at Volcan Casita which tragically buried several rural villages.

Yesterday, a sweet little note from the U.S. Embassy in Managua popped up in my inbox. It was addressed to all American citizens registered as living in Nicaragua and it read, "U.S. citizens are urged to identify secure locations to shelter, monitor media reports, and follow all official instructions. U.S. citizens should carry their travel documents at all times (i.e. U.S Passport, birth certificate, picture I.D.'s, etc.) or secure them in safe, waterproof locations. We also suggest that American citizens contact friends and family in the United States with updates about their whereabouts...the U.S. Embassy will continue to monitor Tropical Storm Ida's track, and will issue updated messages."

So, Moms/Dads, I suppose this is us issuing the recommended update of our whereabouts.

Still in Granada, still living in the barrio, and still planning on going forward with tonight's activities for Noche de Ninas en La Oficina (Girls Night in the Office). I mean, c'mon, let this itty bitty little Hurricane stand in the way of tonight's review of Donde Viven Los Monstruos (Where The Wild Things Are)? We think not.

We'll let nothing stand in the way of that childhood classic.

Keep abreast of Ida's progress at cnn.com.

La Empieza de La Liga Femenina

According to @Futsal.com, the origins of futsal can be traced back to 1930’s Uruguay, where, amid the euphoria generated by the country's victory at the inaugural FIFA World Cup on its home soil, there was a soccer ball being kicked on every street corner in the capital of Montevideo.

Juan Carlos Ceriani, an Argentinean physical education instructor living there at the time observed many youngsters playing soccer on basketball courts due to the shortage of “football pitches” in the city. It was then and there that the idea for a five-a-side variation came about.

Borrowing from the rules of water polo, handball and basketball, Ceriani drew up the original rules of the game, which were quickly adopted across South America. In 1965 the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol de Salon (South American Futsal Confederation) was formed, consisting of Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru, Argentina and Brazil, and futsal continued to spread throughout the region.

It wasn’t long after Kay and I arrived that we realized futsal was beginning to make its mark in our small colonial town of Granada as well. In the historic Parque Central, kids could be found playing throughout the afternoon and evening, maneuvering around monuments and potholes on their way down the court…

We stumbled upon after school leagues where boys (and a handful of girls) put together teams to compete in the cement courtyard. They play in close quarters with mobs of classmates swarming the sidelines heckling and giving much-needed coaching advice. Music blasts over the school’s intercom system…


When we began to plan our Liga Femenina de Fútbol Sin Fronteras, we knew futsal was the answer. Not only are the girls passionate about playing the game, but there are far more concrete surfaces throughout the city than there are hormiga-free fields.

So on Saturday, October 24^th the SWB ninas paraded to the courts, and as an organization, we welcome over 120 girls to help us celebrate the inauguration of our very own Futsal League for Girls.

Dalila López, La Directora del Fútbol Femenino de La Federación Nicaragüense de Fútbol traveled from Nicaragua’s capital of Managua to serve as our guest of honor. We simultaneously celebrated the opening of our league and the 2009 United Nation’s Global Peace Games for Children and Youth. Dalila read the UN Manifesto and highlighted the significance of the day’s games…

We would play to recognize and demonstrate the value of sport to:

• Unite, motivate, inspire and educate

• Encourage peaceful solutions and cultural understanding

• Teach essential values such as cooperation and respect

• Promote life-long health and social skills

• Improve health and wellbeing

• Strengthen links between children and adults

• Contribute to the development of communities

Thanks to the generous donations from high schools, clubs, and university teams across the country, Soccer Without Borders is able to lend uniforms sets to all participating teams so that they can play in style.

Please check back in for League updates and other Special Events.

Until next time, Keep Playing for Change (and Peace).

Tigers Turn Out For Charity

The Southern Columbia Varsity Girls' Soccer Team receives more props for their amazing work raising funds for SWB.


Girls, thank you for making scenes like this possible for our girls (pictured above playing at last month's Saturday practice). Your contributions are helping make this program available to more and more young women throughout Granada and its surrounding areas.

Spotlight on Mary McVeigh

Mary McVeigh became involved with SWB Granada in late 2007 while finishing her master's degree at Lehigh University (the alma mater of SWB founder Ben Gucciardi). She heard about the program through Lehigh, contacted Ben about volunteer opportunities, and after spending a couple of months in Granada with former Lehigh Women's Soccer player Molly Luft in early 2008, Ben promoted her to Project Director.

Here she talks with Trina Chiasson of YouthNoise Play City, about the future of SWB Granada, its needs for expansion, and what she feels is the most rewarding part of her work in the program.

Mary says she is thankful for her role in the organization because it allows her to "pay it forward" and give back to a sport which has influenced and shaped the most essential parts of her character.

Apart from that, however, what Mary neglects to mention is that through her work with SWB Granada, she can now pull off a half-decent Salsa. Here, she is pictured at the Grand Opening of the Granada Office in March, unveiling her new moves on La Calle Santa Lucia.

Get it Jefa (Boss). Keep up with Mary and her work back in the States with Dartmouth here.

What do you play for?

Thanks to Trina Chiasson, Lead Blogger for YouthNoise Play City who contacted us about putting together this SWB feature. (Click left)

YouthNoise Play City is a web campaign that uses sports and play to push for social change. Their mission is to inspire and empower young people everywhere to catapult their passion and idealism into movements to sustain the planet.

Read more about their mission here and check out some other projects on their homepage. Keep playing for change.

How 'Bout Dem zOe's?

She's really not that cool at all. Te prometo... (I promise...)
Click above.

The TELSTAR War

My first blog... bear with me please. Zoey secretly loves this, but writing for me is like pulling teeth. I’ve tried my best, so here goes nothing…

For nearly a decade I have prided myself on a skill I have always felt to be unique of someone at such a young age… that is, my ability to do laundry. However, not only can I simply DO laundry, I actually believe I am rather talented when it comes to laundry… whites with whites, darks with darks, new tie-dyes completely solo for the first cycle. It’s been ages since I’ve slipped and ended up with a load of freshly washed pink laundry or a favorite pair of jeans five sizes too small. Where did I acquire such a useful talent you may ask? Well, the answer is my dear mother. However, let me provide some laundry history, if you will.

At the age of fourteen, just as any other fourteen year old’s room should be, my closet had become the floor of my bedroom. Frustrated with the mounds of laundry that came down the stairs every two weeks and the weekends wasted in a sea of dirty clothes, my mother threw in the towel… my sister and I were on our own. The rule was laundry could decorate our rooms in any fashion we chose as long as there was a clear path to reach our beds in case of emergencies. No big deal right? Who needs clean laundry anyway? Unfortunately, the “smell test” soon failed and I quickly realized that clean clothes were in fact a precious commodity.

My laundry skills improved and I continued to hone my talent throughout college. So much so that our very own Zoey Bouchelle would stand in awe of my flawless wash cycles. I attempted to pass along my gift but even though she is one of the most intelligent people I know, it just never clicked… I never quite understood that. Let’s just say she wore a lot of pink in college.

Upon arriving in Granada, I felt confident that laundry would be one aspect of our daily lives that I would have complete control over, and then the time came for… BUM BUM BUM (dramatic background music)…la lavadora, TELSTAR IMC 125.

Behold.

Considered a luxury here in Nicaragua, I can honestly say that I have met my match. Fill water half way, add detergent, throw in ocho o doce artículos de ropa (8-12 pieces of clothing), and set the tiempo de lavado: seis minutos (wash time: 6 minutes). Transfer the wet, soapy clothing to the rinse-and-spin portion of the machine and set the tiempo de centrifugado at tres minutos (rinse and spin time: 3 minutes, but be sure to turn off the water spicket when 2 have elapsed - crucial). It seemed simple enough and we smiled as our beloved Doña Chilo explained the rather painless process. ¿Trabajando en equipo aprendemos más? Two college degrees - we should be able to do this, right?

Hours later, after many blank stares and loud, unusual noises, the saying, “There’s nothing like a mother’s touch,” again proved true… Many thanks to Doña Chilo who ran back and forth from her room to assist with the TELSTAR IMC 125, which proved rather testy at the hands of its new operators. She would pick up the soapy, sopping wet nest of clothes and gently reposition it in the centrifugal dry compartment, and voila…the TELSTAR would obey her command. This woman’s got experience. I still cannot pinpoint exactly what we were doing wrong or why the whole big box would shake and shiver and screech at us.

The next week, when the clothes had once again piled up, we carried them dejectedly out to the kitchen, again ready to do battle. The TELSTAR glared back at us. Grr.

But this time, Gracias a Dios, out popped Doña Chilo from her room…arms out wide to welcome us and our pile of grossness. We could not have been more grateful that second go-around, believe me. Language barriers, extreme heat, long days… I can handle you. But TELSTAR IMC 125… you win.

All The Lovely Ladies

Records from September 17th show that a total of 14 girls arrived for the SWB Noche de Niῆas (Girls’ Night) in the Office.

The day Kay and I landed in Granada (September 23rd), 56 girls showed up at the door.

A week later (September 30th), attendance held steady at 55, and then on October 3rd rose to 58.

Last Friday, we welcomed 7 new girls to Fútbol Sin Fronteras, and each day we have many more stopping by the Office wondering if they too can start coming to our weeknight events and Saturday morning practices. “¡Por supuesto! (Of Course!)”, we say.

Here is a small sampling of the lovely ladies that come-a-knockin’ Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday afternoons and evenings…

Oh, and lest we remind you, the main room of our Office measures 2.75 Zoeybodies by 3 Kaybodies plus Kaylegs. Not exactly working in a cavernous space here.

As if our primitive (yet rather precise) area calculation technique were not evidence enough, the Office is also in dire need of a Tape Measure. January Camp volunteers, it's right up there at the top of our Wishlist, so por favor start rummaging through Dad's workbench now...

Back's all dusty...

Breaking Records

I’ll be the first to admit I’m new to the world of blogging. I struggle with the HTML codes, I (gently) curse at my computer when the pictures refuse to load, and I am forever googling how to do this and how to do that. The intermittent internet connection we enjoy here in our office in Granada continues to depress my learning curve…at times I feel my blogucation is flat-lining.

Nevertheless, Kay and I persevere with the hope that our sheer enthusiasm for the project and its supporters will override our relative inexperience and continue to make these updates at least mildly interesting to the half dozen or so readers we like to believe we have out there.

Having said that, last week we received an e-mail that enthused us more than any other ever had. We stopped working for at least 3 minutes, unable to believe what we were reading. We smiled and jumped around and just generally acted like morons. The e-mail reinvigorated us, gave us hope for the project’s future, and reminded us of how incredibly rewarding this experience can be for those who choose to be involved. It made all of those months this summer we spent driving and speaking and fundraising and suffering from sleep deprivation absolutely, completely worth it. So, without further adieu, we present SOCO.

I have known this team personally for over two years now. I coached them at the Penn State Women’s Soccer Camp in the summer of ’08, and we had such a grand time, we decided to keep the tradition alive by pairing up again for the PSWS Camp in ’09.

It’s one of those teams with attitude, spunk, and personality…it just makes you like ‘em, you know?

Kay and I gave a short presentation to the high schools at camp to explain the mission of Soccer Without Borders and tell them what we hoped to accomplish as the first-ever long-term interns for the Granada site. Jen Stine, the SOCO Varsity Girls’ Soccer Coach writes that “[after the presentation]… I saw the impact it made on our players, some of them even in tears, when they saw just how harsh conditions can be, and what we take for granted. From that moment forward our kids were inspired to make a difference in any way possible.”

That night every member of the team purchased a Baby Blue and Kay and I were so grateful for their support. Little did we know, their commitment to the cause wouldn’t stop there.

They decided that in addition to the T-Shirts, they would hold SWB events back home. After school, the girls began forming committees and deciding on fundraisers, slowly making progress toward their goal. Jen says that although she and her sister provided guidance, the majority of the work was done by the team. In the end, the SOCO girls raised more money than any single team has in the history of the program. Feast your eyes on all the girls accomplished.

Beside their fundraising success as Ambassadors, Jen says she has seen a marked difference in the girls' behavior. They are more grateful for the things she believes they took for granted in the past because they are able to see how fortunate they are when compared to teams in other parts of the world. “Raising funds for Soccer Without Borders is probably one of the most rewarding experiences a team can have,” she says “…and I would encourage every team to actively participate and host their own events. The feeling of knowing that you are providing one child with the proper soccer equipment, to play in a game that they love, is like no other.”

Reaching their goals did not happen overnight. Player Samantha Fraley admits that it took a lot of preparation and hardwork. However, she says that when it was all said and done “you’re left feeling great with what you accomplished.”

Player Courtney Cecco agrees that each player felt a sense of accomplishment when she looked at the number on the giant check they had made. But she says that beyond that, the SWB experience was also a way to bring the team as a whole closer together. “We decided as a team to raise money and this gave us more responsibility. It gave us the chance to help out when it was not obligated…it was a much better feeling doing it because we wanted to.”

So, just what, you might ask, were SOCO’s secrets to success?

First, they targeted the teaching staff preparing a soup, salad, and sandwich meal at $5 a plate. 80 teachers took them up on the bargain, and everyone left the soccer team’s Teachers Luncheon feeling satisfied.

Then on September 20^th, they organized a Vera Bradley Purse Bingo in the cafeteria and extended an open invitation to everyone at school. They asked for a $15 donation per ticket with the option of buying additional tickets for the 50/50 and Raffle items. With donated baskets and other prizes ready to go, the team waited nervously in the Caf, unsure if their hours of organizing, cooking, basket-making, and running around would be enough to turn a profit…

Needless to say, in the end the event was an unbelievable success. Over 175 people attended the bingo, leaving the girls scrambling to provide additional seating. Every last raffle ticket was sold and every last food morsel was gobbled up.

It all paid off for the SOCO girls – our highest grossing Ambassadors to date.

Huge thanks to these girls for their commitment to the SWB Granada Project and congratulations on your record-setting achievement.

Thank you to Jen Stine and sister Amanda for supporting the team through the process and encouraging other teams to get involved as Ambassadors.

Also, thank you to the staff at Southern Columbia High School for putting up with the Varsity Team’s antics and allowing these girls to rule the roost for an afternoon or two. All in the name of a good cause, right?

Until next time, thank you to anyone/everyone who continues to check-in with us on the blog. As of today, rest assured we're still alive and kicking and loving the experience.

Busy Sunday?

Hope not.

New Dartmouth Press Release:

The Dartmouth Women's Soccer Team plans to show its continued support of Soccer Without Borders' Granada Project at their SWB Game Day on Sunday, Oct. 11.

After the match against New Hampshire, Dartmouth coaches and players will host a skills clinic for youth of all ages, and those who make donations of $20 or more will receive the new Dartmouth/Soccer Without Borders T-Shirt.

Get more information on the event here.

Hotel Con Corazon

Hotel Con Corazon is a “Hotel on a Mission.”

Located across the street from our SWB Office here in Granada, our friends at the Hotel work to support the sustainable development of Nicaragua by investing a portion of their profits into education and employment initiatives.

Marcel Zuidhof and Onno Oostveen arrived in Nicaragua in 2006 with the dream of opening their “Hotel With a Heart” and one and a half years later, happily greeted their first guests.

In addition to employing exclusively Nicaraguan hotel staff, purchasing native products, working with local suppliers, and encouraging hotel employees to go back to school, the Hotel sponsors a Foundation which aims to subsidize the education of 300 children living in the rural Laguna area outside Granada by year’s end.

On July 3, 2009, four of Fútbol Sin Fronteras’ youth leaders took a “field trip” with the Hotel, arming themselves with a bag of balls and Pugg goals to run a soccer clinic for the children the Hotel supports.

That initial clinic became the basis for what is now the Hotel’s after-school recreational program. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons, FSF youth leaders travel by truck up to the small pueblos 5km from the Laguna de Apoyo and work with the children from 2pm-6pm. At schools where resources are scarce and most children don’t have adequate access to food, water, or basic hygiene, the soccer clinics are a welcome recess from the problems many of them face on a daily basis.

On October 3, the Hotel celebrated its first anniversary by inviting all of the children from the Laguna schools for a fiesta in the city. Of course, FSF was there to help greet the children. An entire city block was roped off to create mini-soccer fields for the kids to play their new favorite game.

The children celebrated from 1pm-4pm; they played soccer in the streets, got their faces painted (pintacara), received string bracelet making lessons from some of our artistic FSF youth leaders, decorated bottles, and relaxed in the Hotel’s free Reading Room sponsored by the local library.

In between all of the fun, groups of children were herded over to the Lavar Mis Dientes (Brush My Teeth) Station, where they had their soon-to-be-pearly-whites properly cleaned by volunteers and received a tube of paste and brush.

When the busloads of kids were on their way back home, the Hotel quickly began cleaning up to prepare for the weekend’s next activity. The entire city of Granada was invited to celebrate their first anniversary that evening with promises of Free Toῆas (Nicaragua’s National beer), celebrity DJ appearances, raffles, and dance competitions.

Cesar, one of our youth leaders, won a 2 night stay in the Hotel, which he will dutifully share with his madre. I, on the other hand, was dragged on-stage against my will to participate in the night’s Female Dance Competition.

Now, when I say “against my will”, I mean to say that I was literally grabbed underneath the armpits by a number of strange men, hoisted up like a marionette, and left standing bewildered in front of a crowd of hundreds of Nicas to “show what I got” on the dance floor. It was fight or flight.

I managed to survive a slight faux paus during contestant introductions. When asked by the DJ where I lived and I mindlessly responded “En la casa de Doῆa Chilo”. The room instantly erupted with laughter. Apparently, the name of my barrio (neighborhood), el 17 de julio (17th of July), would have been a more acceptable answer instead of my house mom’s actual name. I guesstimate the population of Doῆa Chilos in Granada to be in the neighborhood of 20,000 (keep in mind, this figure is based on no formal research).

Nevertheless, I got through my act. While some might claim it was blonde hair, not dancing prowess, that contributed to my victory that night, I continue to bask in the glory of victory (after all, Suyen, la Nica, was another competitor).

That night, it was the Gringa who prevailed in a dance-off against a Nica and an Isrealite.

I like to think there’s still hope for us on the dance floor.

To Whom It May Concern

Dear Friends at BAC,

I’ve visited your website and reviewed your extensive list of services. I see you offer checking and savings accounts with promotional interest rates for your
customers and extend special deals to businesses that choose to manage their money with you. You write that your bank is committed to the needs of the customer, committed to excellence, committed to providing clients access to their money and accounts at any moment. Your site is navigable and colorful. You certainly convey a nice image through the internet.

We’ve visited your headquarters in Granada a number of times as well, and like your website, it is also very well maintained. We enjoy waiting in line in the foyer to use your ATMs because you have beautiful tile floors and keep the air conditioning running full blast long after the main bank has closed. You offer respite from the 90 degree afternoons and evenings we have here in Nicaragua.

On Saturday, we came again. We brought our foreign checking card and stood in line as usual. Thank you for having ATMs compatible with our US accounts. Suyen, Kay, Marisa, Cindy, and I waited expectantly for our turn at the Cajero Automatico (it was PayDay after all) and admired the glossy banners surrounding us which advertise the ease of use and convenience your Cajeros (ATMs) offer to your clients.

Our turn came and we stuck the card in the slot. We typed in our four digit code and selected our checking account. We wanted dollars.The Cajero processed the amount and directed us to “Please take your money.” Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, we heard the money fanning out inside. Only a few more seconds and we could dole out the cash our youth leaders had been working so hard for all weeklong.We waited. “Please take your money” – the message blinked again. We put out our hands. “Please take your money”, it insisted. Kay and I looked at each other, foreheads scrunched, “Dude, what money?”

BAC, your money door never opened. We waited, knowing that our wad of dollars was just pressing up on the inside of your money door, desperate to get out and into our hands. We knew our dollars were in limbo, no longer in our account, stuck in what we imagined as Middle Earth…a terrible place where it no longer lived safely in its account, but hadn’t yet arrived at its intended destination – our hands.

BAC, we sat on your steps for two more hours that night and waited (a bit more expectantly now) as your armed security guards dialed mysterious numbers and talked in hushed voices. We felt so badly for our wad of dollars, still squished inside the Cajero which your guards unplugged from the wall and seemed to forget. They moved one of your glossy banners in front of it and we stared at it. It read “Gana tiempo. Saque tu dinero en este momento con nuestros Cajeros. (Save time. Take your money out this very moment using our ATMs.)” Your guards have a gift for irony.

A technician named Geraldo came and knocked on the money door for a little while, but it still wouldn’t open even for him. His daughter came too and banged her Barbie’s head against the money door. Still nothing. He told us to come back Monday to get our wad of dollars.

It’s Monday. We’ve walked through your beautifully tiled foyer three times today and under your metal detector arch and talked with the pretty ladies in skirts who sit behind your polished desks and smile. They said they are not authorized to remove our dollar wad from Middle Earth and deliver it our hands. Geraldo hid behind the bulletproof glass and counted someone else’s dollar wad and refused to look at us in the eyes. I wanted to knock on the huge money door that led to his little hide-out in the back and get his attention, but I restrained myself.

I guess I’m just writing you to ask where our dollar wad is now. I noticed today that in the foyer the broken Cajero from Saturday seems to be fixed, and it’s no longer hiding behind the glossy banner. It’s lights are blinking green and it seems healthy, so I want to know, where did the dollar wad go that was stuck in its throat on Saturday?

We’ll keep coming in to sit in your air conditioned foyer, but we’ll begin to become a nuisance if you don’t start to acknowledge us. Our bosses in the US are calling you this very moment to talk about your Cajero, and ask about Geraldo, and they’re not as forgiving as we are.

BAC, when you cough up the wad, we’ll be able to lay this to rest, but as of right now, I’m headed out the door to visit your Granada headquarters again.

Looking forward to doing more business with you in the future.

Sincerely, your loyal customer,
Zoey Bouchelle