On Friday, myself and Joel went out to the Red Location which is a small area that forms part of New Brighton township. We were recruiting teams for the upcoming HIV Counseling and Testing Soccer tournament on December 4th. We need about 12 teams of 10 kids, half boys half girls totaling 120 kids. The tournament is an opportunity for us to reach kids in the community with our curriculum through an all day event that will involve soccer, some life skill and HIV prevention lessons in a fun environment at an event that will also be open to the public - with free HIV Counseling and Testing for all.
That is the background. Moses is one of our business associates, whose work involves printing certificates for our graduations, printing shirts for events and other printing related jobs we need done. He also works after hours as the head coach for City Lads. A lady's soccer team playing in the provincial league and the team that provided GRS with its first group of female coaches back in 2007 (most of these coaches, including Titie are still with us). He is a resident of New Brighton, and the Red Location area in particular. After mentioning Skillz street to him, he set us up with a meeting with an influential person at the Red location museum who has since allowed us to use the museum premises for Skillz Street. On Friday we were looking for teams for the HCT though, and Moses was once again on hand to assist.
Moses' story is as important as anyone's story told on this blog. Here is a man who is so invested in the well being of his community that he is willing to take time out to make sure important work such as life skills training and HIV prevention is being done for the benefits of ids in the area. Speaking to him about the area he lives in, one can easily tell how important it is to him, and his assistance so far has proven this. After being introduced to a few community members Moses took us to a weekly club meeting hosted by Red City Football Club, a men's team. I know next to no background on the team but the sequence of events that occurred at the meeting inspired me.
We walked into the Red City meeting, and from the start I felt like we had invaded their space. Moses assured us that it was ok, and encouraged us to seat ourselves to grab seats in a very conspicuous corner next to the most senior member of the club who was discussing what seemed to be a very solemn issue with a room full of club members whose age ranged from (I speculate here) 15 to 55. The small living room packed in about 12 men and boys and in we walked, clearly disrupting the meeting. We were soon reassured though by the old patriarch of the team, who welcomed us and gave us the floor to say our bit. Moses spoke most of the time, on our behalf and then me and Joel followed with our appeal to get the younger members of Red City F.C. involved. When it was time for questions/comments a senior member of the team thanked us for reaching out to them and he hoped that the relationship could be maintained. The welcome was a warm one and I am sure we will get at least 2 teams from Red City.
One thing that came up was the fact that the guys playing for Red City are disadvantaged in several ways, and even playing football the game they love so much is affected by a lack of resources like balls, kits and other supplies. I could not promise these guys anything at all, except valuable participation in an important life skills curriculum for their younger members.
The club has clearly been around for a long time, judging from the age of it's most senior member. I would really like to find out more about the club, because if it hasn't already been done I think their story should be told and if I can assist them in any way I would certainly like to. My short encounter with the Red City football club was just one instance that shows the true importance of the game in so many African communities. The club's structure fosters a system where people have a sense of belonging and investment in a structure that gives the younger guys an opportunity to keep busy, have fun and learn directly from older men in the community through the club.
It was a truly "grassroot" moment. I wonder what the World Cup legacy would be for clubs like Red City and people involved. These are the people that truly love the game, and I am not sure if enough was done to connect them to global extravaganza. This can be a discussion for another day, but I am thankful that Moses introduced us to some of the people that make up the community in the Red location area.
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