The Kids League and why I went to Africa

Everyone has asked me what took me to Africa last month.  I figured I'd start by telling you all how it came about and how it evolved into something much more.

Every year, my parents take soccer teams to Denmark and Sweden to participate in some international soccer tournaments.  I've gone along several times to coach, chaperone, and to take my own kids.  The tournament in Sweden is called "The Gothia Cup" and is the largest youth soccer tournament in the world.  It draws teams from all over the world.  They have an opening ceremonies that packs in over 40,000 people.  About 5 years ago, some teams from Africa started coming.  The Ugandan and Zambian teams drew a lot of attention at the tournament for many reasons.  It was unusual to have teams coming from third world and war ravaged countries and the teams have a lot of personality that makes them fun to watch.  The Ugandan teams are also really good and have won their age group at the tournament 4 times.  It is not easy to win the Gothia Cup so they are like celebrities there.  Benson Soccer (my families soccer organization) became acquainted with the Ugandan team and got to know the man that is responsible for them going abroad to play.  There is something very special about these kids that come and the director, Trevor Dudley.  Each year when we meet up at Gothia we trade items and give them gifts to take home.  

Trevor Dudley is an incredible man who began the program that started this all.  He is an englishman who has been living in Africa, mainly Uganda for the past 27 years.  He retired from his profession and started a sports program called "The Kampala Kids League or KKL".  It was mainly a soccer and sports organization that was formed to give the kids in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, an organized opportunity to play sports.    Each team has disadvantaged kids on it.   They use sports to bring education and help to disadvantaged kids.   The KKL has been a big success in Kampala so in 2003, Trevor and the KKL expanded the program into the other districts of Uganda, mainly, the war torn northern region.  They call that program "The Kids League or the TKL".  They have expanded to 9 districts (districts are like counties, Uganda is the size of Oregon) including the Gulu district which is where many of the atrocities have happened over the last 20 years in the north.

Girls do not play soccer in Uganda and Trevor wanted us to come over, see his program and to show the girls (and boys) in Uganda that girls can play sports as well.  Since my sister Suzy and I both play and coach soccer, we were the perfect candidates to go along and we both have always had a desire to go to Africa and do humanitarian work.   My parents also decided to go and so the four of  us embarked on this journey together.  The TKL's main focus is to help the kids in the war torn districts and they use soccer/sports to promote health and education.  I've attached some of the photos I took off the TKL bulletin board that shows where the districts have been established, their goals or mission, and the director Trevor Dudley.  The other photo is of me and the boys team who will be going to Gothia this summer.  These boys in the photo are chosen from the the TKL districts and the KKL to form this one team that will go abroad this summer to play.  These boys are brought to Kampala, and are given a place to live, they get their school paid for (you have to pay for your kids to got to school in Uganda), and they feed them and try to get them healthy.  The week we were there, Trevor was trying to find some funding to get them some "meat" for their diet at least once a week and they were "de-worming" the boys since having worms in your gut is a common thing amongst the villagers due to what they eat.  (I know, this sounds gross, but it's the reality there!)  They want to get the boys as healthy as they can before they go to Gothia.  They have to raise about $20,000 US dollars for the boys to go.

It takes $100,000 US dollars to start a new district and so Trevor is always working hard to find funding and help.    The work he does is amazing and we were able to participate in the work he does as well as learn about all the aspects of the organization.  Trevor was honored by HRH Price Charles last fall when he paid a visit to Uganda.  Trevor was given an award from Prince Charles and gave him the same tour of TKL and the KKL that we got.   

We were also able to work in some baby orphanages, attend church, and work in another place for orphaned and disadvantaged kids called the Rainbow House of hope.  

This was an incredible experience and I hope to document it all here after I've had a month to decompress from all that I saw.  It's taken me this long to be able to take it all in.  Never have I seen so many things that are so life changing.  Bear with me as I tell my stories from Uganda.