Notre Dame Preparatory School

Founded in 1873, Notre Dame Preparatory School is a Catholic, independent college preparatory school for girls, owned and operated by the School Sisters of Notre Dame. It is located in Towson, MD, about 15 minutes from my casa, and it just so happens to be my alma mater.

Earlier this summer my friend and former coach, Chris Lopez, invited me back to school to serve as his Assistant. Flattered, I accepted, and boy, am I glad I did.

I suppose I should have remembered, having been a former student and all, that Notre Dame not only exists to educate, but to inspire their girls to be agents of change and advocates of social justice. Needless to say, when the team got wind of the work Kay and I planned to do at SWB's Granada Project, they organized immediately to support the cause.

Every member of the team purchased her very own Baby Blue, raising $360 that has gone directly towards helping sustain the project. Additionally, they put together a school-wide, week-long equipment drive to gather new and gently used gear from friends and family which helps us stock the shelves of our bodega here in Granada.



The team displays their totals (in style, I might add): 58 pairs of cleats (tacos), 21 balls (balones), 27 cones (conos), 19 pinnies (chalecos), 3 hats (gorras), 4 bags (mochilas), 14 pairs of socks (calcetas), 1 sweat suit (chaqueta y pantalones), 15 T-Shirts (camisa), 17 pairs of shorts (chores), and 14 pairs of shinguards (chimpinilleras).

These girls were very busy Blazers before I left. And just in case you're curious...they're doing some pretty good work on the field as well...

NDP vs. Maryvale
NDP vs. John Carroll

SWB on Gopsusports.com

Check out today's press release on Penn State University's Official Athletics Website.

"Women's Soccer Alums Embark on Soccer Without Borders Internships"

SWB on ESPN.com

This man right here is a star. Allow us to introduce Graham Hays of ESPN.com.

Graham writes for Page 2 and contributes to ESPN.com's women's basketball, softball and soccer coverage. Hays began with ESPN in 1999 and he's now an editor for ESPN.com's SportsNation.

Graham heard about our work and approached us to put together a feature. He's done an admirable job of summing up our current vision for this project.

Check out his article here.

And please excuse me for this shameless (I mean, shameless) plug. But on September 21st, Graham also published an article speculating on the outcome of a few upcoming conference games. He gave props to BC midfielders Gina DiMartino, Julia Bouchelle (sound familiar?) and Kristen Mewis in his review of the ACC, and also acknowledged Penn State as a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten.

Gracias Graham.

La Llegada a Granada - "The Arrival to Granada"

Apologies for the delay in our first official update. Five days ‘in-country’ before blogging isn’t that bad, right?

Well, as you can read, we arrived safe and sound in Granada. We only endured two or three setbacks – you know, our airplane needing an hour of maintenance before take-off, the difficulties that arise when you stick nearly 400 lbs. of gear with two girls that each weigh about 100 lbs. and change, and the re-entrance into Spanish speaking culture which always makes things interesting.

Again, for the millionth time, thank you to everyone who donated gear this summer – the teams, the schools, the individuals. And a special thanks to Puma – who generously donated over 50 pairs of nearly unused cleats and cleat bags, as well as the bins needed to transport it all to the bodega (storage closet) here in our office in Granada.

And so the journey begins. BWI Airport, 4:30am, Checking las maletas (luggage).


We watch in horror as the pounds keep adding up...fees, fees, fees! Nervously we do the math in our heads. "$100 + $100 + $100...Um, did we fundraise enough for this dude?!"








Gracias a Dios, American permits us to ship our equipment free of charge. Besos (kisses) American. You're lovely.

And after all of it is checked and it disappears on the conveyor belt...there remains only two...


Two planes and three cities later, we arrived in country. We emerged from Baggage Claim into 90 degree heat and immediately received un monton (a mountain) of hugs and kisses from Chepe, Cesar, and Suyen, three of the youth leaders who have been running the office in the interim, as well as Neyton, our friend and official airport shuttle man. After the gear was loaded, we hopped in the cab of the pick-up and we were off.

Cesar (left) and Chepe (right) guarded the rear while we rode an hour south from Managua (la capital) to Granada (where la oficina of Futbol Sin Fronteras is located).


13 hours later and voila! Operation Transport-the-Gear...Complete.


We've been on-the-go since we hit the ground. So far we've emptied and taken a complete inventory of the equipo (equipment) in la bodega, and we're working on constructing brand new shelves to replace the plywood that's sagging under the weight of the dozens of cleats and shinguards, shirt and shorts, sports bras, socks, and backpacks that have found their way down to our office. We'll report back on that project in a bit.

As always, besos a todos (kisses to all) back in the States. We'll do our best to keep your abreast of the progress down here. Thanks to everyone who continues to support the SWB Granada site stateside.

Conestoga Girls Soccer Youth Clinic

ah [ah]
–interjection
(used as an exclamation of pain, surprise, pity, joy, satisfaction, dislike, delight, etc., according to the manner of utterance)

Okay, so at times we admit this summer’s mad dash to drum up funds and spread the word about SWB has bordered on what some might call “helter-skelter”. Kay and I have spoken at BBQs, in people’s homes, and over dinner with friends; we’ve presented in classrooms and at college camps, clinics, and training sessions; we’ve visited high schools and bars (perhaps those two shouldn’t be placed in the same sentence fragment); we’ve even set up string bracelet shops in the **School to Remain Unnamed For Liability Purposes** dorms. We’ve taken the proverbial leave-no-stone-left-unturned approach and in the process uttered every brand of “ah” we know. But for every ah of pain, dislike, pity, or exhaustion, we’ve had occasion for twice as many ah’s of delight. In large part, we can thank SWB’s newest batch of generous and enthusiastic supporters for the success we’ve enjoyed this summer.

One of our most positive ah moments to-date came in August when we were approached by Danielle Fagan, Head Coach of the Girls Varsity Soccer Team at Conestoga High School and Founder/Director of soccerdcf, a soccer program which focuses on developing players both on and off the field. We had just given an ah-ful SWB camp presentation plagued with more technical snafus than even the Penn State IT Techs knew how to tackle. Danielle, however, was immediately taken with our cause and wanted to help. She suggested we join forces at her team’s Youth Clinic later in the summer, offering to donate a portion of the profits to SWB Granada. Talk about ah-some! (Okay. No more clever ah’s from here on out. Promise.)

So on September 2nd, the Conestoga Girls Team, led by goalkeeper Alex Stone, welcomed 100 girls ages 4-11 for a Youth Soccer Clinic with proceeds going to support both their school’s soccer program and ours in Nicaragua.



Head Coach Fagan credits her team for the event’s success. “I was so incredibly proud of the Conestoga Girls Soccer Players as they were the ones who made it an exceptional experience for the little girls. The leadership of our seniors and contribution by all Stoga players was amazing.” She adds "…they are excited to be able to have a portion of the proceeds donated to SWB, and hope to continue to work with SWB as team Ambassadors.” Well Kay and I, for two, could not be happier to welcome this group aboard.



The school’s soccer program is not new to fundraising for a good cause. In 2005, they held a similar clinic which helped raise money for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. These clinics give the Conestoga Girls Soccer players an opportunity to give back to the local youth soccer community as well as make a difference.



Huge thanks to Danielle Fagan for being so instrumental in making this event happen; thank you to the members of the Stoga Girls Varsity Soccer team for your continued support – we look forward to working with you as Ambassadors again; thank you to the young girls who took part in the clinic, many of whom are members of the local Tredyffrin Easttown Youth Soccer Association (no wonder everyone just calls it TEYSA).

Stoga – we ah-pplaud you for your efforts! (Sorry - couldn’t resist) Thank you so much for allowing us to be a part of your Clinic and best of luck this season. Keep playing for change!

MBS Pro Touch 'Girls Only' Soccer Camp

From August 3rd to 7th, Maher Brothers Soccer held their Pro Touch ‘Girls Only’ Soccer Camp in Middle Township, NJ. Campers ranging in age from 4 to 18 took part in one of the highest quality summer soccer camps in the Cape May area.

MBS Co-founders and professional athletes, Anthony and Matthew Maher, are committed to taking a holistic approach to player development by pairing elite soccer instruction with lessons in what they call “Life Principle Building Blocks”. Each afternoon, campers and coaches discuss the importance of persistence, decision-making, and keeping a positive attitude – life principles they believe are essential to success both on and off the field.



This summer, they invited Camp Coach Kaleen to give a Life Principles presentation to the girls which focused on the importance of giving back. She shared our story with Soccer Without Borders, talked about our upcoming trip to Nicaragua (T-minus 6 days everyone), and got the girls enthused about the Granada Project. On the final day of camp, our newest supporters outfitted themselves with baby blue SWB T’s while Kay accepted gear donations.



Thank you Maher Brothers for your commitment to running an incredible camp and for allowing SWB to be a part of it. And of course, thank you campers for being enthusiastic about our cause and getting involved in any way that you can.

Even though summer is nearly gone, the Maher Brothers will continue to offer specialized club training year-round, so check it out. In addition, they have found a way to combine “the excitement and athleticism of soccer, tennis, and volleyball into one fast and furious package” - check out their upcoming King of the Court Tournaments as we get closer to the New Year.

Southeastern Pennsylvania Soccer Hall of Fame High School Tournament

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Soccer Hall of Fame hosted their First Annual High School Tournament on August 29th at the Parkwood Soccer Complex in Philadelphia, PA. The Hall of Fame's President Bob Kozlowski and Vice President Gordon Dunlop were kind enough to allow Kaleen to set up shop for the afternoon with T-Shirts and Ambassador information available for high school players and parents interested in learning more about our project.

Girls' Varsity Teams from Boyertown, Perkiomen Valley, Germantown Academy, and St. Basil Academy as well as Boys' Varsity Teams from Chestnut Hill Academy, Hatboro-Horsham, and Father Judge competed in the event.



Thank you to all of those players and families who stopped by to chat and to those who made donations. Every dollar makes a difference.

Bob and Gordon, thank you again for allowing us to be a part of your event. Best of luck to all of the participating teams in your upcoming seasons.

Also deserving a bit of recognition - Miss Amanda Brown - former Lehigh Women's Soccer Coach, soon-to-be University profesora, and banner-maker-extraordinaire (see above). A woman of many talents. Thanks to her mom, Babs, as well for offering her sewing expertise on such short notice. We receive compliments on your art frequently.