In January, fourteen members from Wilderness Church flew down to Primo Tapia, Mexico to serve at the La Hermosa Orphanage. The church team requested soccer gear from Soccer Chaplains United’s Community Project request program. Below is a brief update from Pastor Jake Chambers on the trip and what the team was able to accomplish as well as plans to head back in May.
The trip was so great. We had such a fun time at the ranch and we were able to do some training for the kids and some for the house moms, too, which was so fun. The kids loved the jerseys as well, so thanks so much for getting those.
A lot of love in that home and so was fun to just share in all the love that the Lord is spreading there!
We were also able to build them a chicken coop and secure the fencing around their soccer field which was great. We are going to try and go back there again in May.
Jake Chambers on the trip to La Hermosa Orphanage
Remember, when you support Soccer Chaplains United, a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals or organizations, and cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/20230108_155039-scaled.jpg8871920Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2023-03-02 00:00:002024-07-08 23:50:11Update from Wilderness Church: Mexico
Recently, Ethan Kell, son of Soccer Chaplains United chaplain Michael Kell reached out and requested soccer gear for his school’s spring break missions trips happening right here in the US in the city of Cleveland (as well as a few other locations). Together with Envision Cleveland, Woodcrest Christian High School, is sending out 114 students for spring time missions work. Ethan and a team of 18 students and 4 adult leaders will travel Ohio to work with inner city kids in downtown Cleveland, including many Somali refugees. Ethan hopes to use soccer as a way to build relationships and the requested gear will hopefully open many of those doors.
Ethan Kell plays for LAFC Academy and has asked for gear from Soccer Chaplains United for his upcoming mission trip to Cleveland
Envision Cleveland
Envision Cleveland has a number of different outreaches and programs aimed at building up the community in different parts of the city. Their mission and aim is to build up and strengthen neighbors and communities and the recent influx of refugees into the US and into Cleveland have created an important place to serve.
Ethan shared more of his hopes and what he is “keeping” in mind as he takes on this trip:
Getting outside of my normal life and serving others in need will let me get a picture of God’s heart for others and what he is doing in other areas. I am excited to take this trip now as this may be the only chance I have while in high school. Many know that I am playing soccer with the MLS Academy of Los Angeles Football Club. The commitment is year round and much is expected. I am taking a step of faith and participating in this trip. This trip will accomplish several things: First, we will support the local Christian workers serving in Cleveland. Second, we will meet practical needs — working with Somali refugees, running children’s ministry and serving in downtown. Third, we will hopefully be able to share with people how much Jesus loves them and they can know Him. Finally, we will be changed and impacted to serve here (in LA) when we return. I am excited about the experience that lies ahead. Please pray for God to provide for every need and that he would begin preparing my heart to serve him.
Ethan Kell, on his aspirations for this trip
Students from Woodcrest Christian School will be traveling to several places in the US and also to the country of Belize. You can see more about what different students and teams will be doing here.
Project Request:
Soccer Balls
Soccer Jerseys/Shorts/Socks
Working with children 5-18 years of age and 50-100 people
Shipping items (either to LA or Cleveland)
Remember, when you support Soccer Chaplains United, a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals or organizations, and cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/WoodcrestSticker.png779774Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2023-02-23 00:00:002024-07-19 15:06:42Kell Keeping Woodcrest and Envision Cleveland
Last October, partner church Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church (CCPC) made their way to Juárez, Mexico for the 28th time in a nearly 34-year history. Every year, CCPC goes down seeking to make an impact in a neighborhood just a stone’s throw away from the boarder, with the University of Texas – El Paso’s college buildings in plain sight.
La Iglesia Maranatha and Pastor Jorge Mata has been serving in the Felipe Ángeles neighborhood for those many, many years. One of the annual traditions for the family mission trip of CCPC is to play a “friendly” soccer (fútbol) match prior to the week’s worth of work on a Sunday in a local park. This trip was no different as team members, Jared and Mea Kelso, write about their experience:
Lots of kids are kicking around soccer balls in Juarez, Mexico, thanks to the generosity of Soccer Chaplains United! This fall, Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church (CCPC) returned to Juarez, Mexico to visit Iglesia Maranatha. CCPC has a 20+ year relationship with Iglesia Maranatha. Iglesia Maranath serves the inner-city community of Juarez, and it has been faithfully led by Pastor Jorge for 40 years. The mission trip included leading a VBS program during the afternoon for local school children and repainting the church during the mornings, as well as encouraging and catching up with old friends.
On our first Sunday, we attended Church and held a picnic at one of the local parks. All of the Church members were there, and almost everyone played in a pick-up soccer game! Soccer Chaplains United’s donation of gear allowed us to hand out new jerseys to the church members that were put to good use in a vigorous match in the park. It was so much fun to watch our groups begin to bond as they played for over an hour!
While we didn’t have a chance to hand out jerseys to the kids, we were able to donate the jerseys to Iglesia Maranatha. Part of their outreach to the city includes a thrift shop that Ms. Marta, Pastor Jorge’s wife, runs alongside her dental clinic. Donating these jerseys gives the Church an opportunity to sell high-quality clothes and put more money towards their facility fees and encourage Pastor Jorge and his family. The jerseys also allow the customer a chance to own something that’s uniquely theirs!
Thank you Soccer Chaplains United for your continued support of Cherry Creek Pres’ ministry, and the chance to donate this gear to Iglesia Maranatha!
Jared and Mea Kelso, team members for Juárez mission trip 2022
Remember, when you support Soccer Chaplains United, a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals or organizations, and cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/K09A1192-scaled.jpg12801920Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2023-01-12 00:00:002024-07-08 23:54:41Team CCPC Takes on Team Iglesia Maranatha; Both Win
This morning, fourteen members from Wilderness Church flew to Primo Tapia, Mexico to serve at the La Hermosa Orphanage. The church team requested soccer gear from Soccer Chaplains United’s Community Project request program. You can follow the teams progress and blog updates below.
La Hermosa Orphanage
Pastor Jakeb Chambers (pictured below, right) has been partnering with La Hermosa since their inception in 2018. The orphanage was built by a local church, and resides on the property. The pastor of that church was himself an orphan, and was adopted by the pastor that served before him. What a legacy!
The team is traveling to lead a soccer camp and provide some aid, stability during a time of transition. La Hermosa recently took in nine new children and is in the middle of a few staff transitions. Jakeb shared that these kids are coming from a place where they have been “cast out” and told that they “don’t belong”. But they love soccer! For him, it is much more than just a soccer jersey. A jersey represents a team – a place of belonging; a family. This gear will be the perfect way to welcome the new children to the home and to bring them all together as a team – the La Hermosa familia!
Project Fulfillment:
2 Ball Pumps
21 T-Shirts
21 Youth Soccer Kits (jerseys and shorts)
Remember, when you support Soccer Chaplains United, a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals or organizations, and cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Screen-Shot-2023-01-04-at-11.16.40-PM-scaled.jpg7411920Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2023-01-05 00:00:002024-07-08 23:54:47Wilderness Church Is Off to Mexico!
Matt Keifer, the Director of Operations for Cumbre Alta, recently sent the following report:
First of all… thank you again! This is awesome stuff and can’t tell you how excited our men and womens team will be to get all of this new gear.
Because of the amount that was given, and the varying sizes, we have enough of the compression gear to give to both the first team’s of the men and women. There will not be another team in category that has anything like this for the men, and zero teams regardless of classification will have anything like this for women. Women usually get the leftovers at best, but usually get the worst clothing, equipment, and field choices. This is one area we want to distinguish ourselves by putting the women on equal footing with the men in every way. I have no doubt our guys and girls will be flooding their personal social media pages with their new training gear- I really can’t explain how cool and rare this will be for our players.
The t-shirts we received are already put to good use. We have already given out a bunch as “prizes” to kids that attend our games- we have small competitions before and after games and we give the tshirts as prizes for competing. Something else that no other team is doing around here (taking care of their fans and giving stuff away for free)!
We gave the jackets away to the women’s teams. In all we gave away 56 jackets to the players of our 2 women’s teams. It is another way that we demonstrate to them that they are just as valued as their male counterparts… Thank you!
We still have about 35 tshirts of smaller sizes that we will give to the kids of a local orphanage. We have a small camp planned there where the kids will receive these tshirts.
Again… thank you! Getting donations like this is rare but super beneficial to our program as a whole, but more importantly demonstrates the love of Christ when we get to explain to our players where the clothing/ gear comes from and why. It’s another touch point that allows us the share the Gospel with our players.
Cumbre Alta was able to add their logo to the compression gear the team took down
When you financially support Soccer Chaplains United a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community Project from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals projects and organizations, and to cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/image-e1622053271979.png-e1652133785306.webp334673Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2022-11-03 00:00:002024-07-08 23:56:35Cumbre Alta Strives for Equality With Latest Gear
Partner church Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church made their way to Uganda this past summer. The team made a request for soccer gear from Soccer Chaplains United’s Community Project program. You can see what gear we were able to provide by clicking here. They share a final update on the trip and how it went below.
Uganda
This year our church was able to take a team of high school students to Uganda to partner with Youth for Christ (YFC) Uganda in serving schools in the town of Matugga. One of things that always helps our team connect with the Ugandan people is the game of soccer. In bringing different types of gear and uniforms we connect relationally with the YFC team as well as empower them to connect with their community.
YFC Uganda is involved with local schools helping combat early dropouts and teen pregnancies. One of the ways they connect with the students in the community is by holding soccer tournaments. The gear that is provided helps facilitate these tournaments by providing new teams uniforms and prizes to attract new teams. These tournaments give the members of the organization credibility when they present their messages in schools.
The uniforms that are donated help foster team pride and bonding. When a team receives their new kits you can sense an increase in their morale. They often remark that they look ‘smart’ and must play as well as they look. The gear also helps our team connect with the YFC team. Our team joins up with YFC team to compete in the tournament. Putting on the same kit and supporting each other adds a layer of relational connection that makes ministry more fruitful.
Finally, the gear provided helps facilitate YFC’s provide a place of connection for the students in the area. Their soccer facilities and gear help draw students away from the street and gangs and gives them a safe place to connect with adults and other students their age. The donations are a big part of YFC’s mission to be a beacon of hope in their region.
Thank you so much for partnering with our trip. It was an amazing trip. The gear you provided helped so much in connecting our team with the YFC team and allowed us to bless the students in Matugga.
When you financially support Soccer Chaplains United a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community Project from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals projects and organizations, and to cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/K09A9211.jpg12801920Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2022-10-27 00:00:002024-07-08 23:56:43CCPC Uganda 2022 Team Blesses Matuggan Students
Partner church Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church made their way to Ethiopia this past summer. The team made a request for soccer gear from Soccer Chaplains United’s Community Project program. You can see what they received here. Recently, the team sent us a final update on how the trip went. We share it below.
Final Update
We returned to Ethiopia for our first mission trip since Covid to serve with Hope for the Fatherless (HFTF). HFTF is an orphan ministry in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, that works to rescue children from institutional care, place them in forever families, and develop a culture of domestic adoption in Ethiopia.
Hope for the Fatherless currently cares for 28 children in its small, family-style homes, sponsors a number of other vulnerable children in single-parent homes who risk becoming orphaned themselves, and trains and equips adoptive families because children belong in families, not institutions.
Through the generosity of Soccer Chaplains United, we were able to gift each of HFTF’s homes (Hope House, Faith House, and Grace House) with their own indestructible soccer ball and jerseys for all the kids.
Soccer is definitely a favorite pastime for the children, and our team enjoyed playing many soccer games with them in the courtyard at Hope House.
When we brought out the soccer balls from SCU, the kids immediately started a game. And later in the week, when we gifted the jerseys to them, they were over the moon! Each kiddo immediately put on their jersey as soon as they got theirs—it was incredible to watch the joy that overcame them, simply because they got their own jersey.
This was such a highlight of the trip! Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church was very excited to partner with SCU once again to help bring so much happiness and fun to these incredible kids in Ethiopia. One of the boys has told us for five years now that he intends to be a professional soccer player when he is older. He received some goalie equipment from SCU and wanted to pass along a big THANK YOU!!
It is a joy to see how something as simple as a shirt or ball, which we often take for granted in America, can be such a gift of love and bring so much excitement to orphaned and vulnerable kids halfway around the world. Thank you, Soccer Chaplains United and Colorado Rapids! Your generosity not only impacted the kids, but the team as well. In seeing the joy the kids had, we couldn’t help but be joyful as well. We experienced the beautiful community that comes from generosity as we celebrated alongside our brothers and sisters in Ethiopia. Thank you SCU and Colorado Rapids for your generosity and support!
When you financially support Soccer Chaplains United a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community Project from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals projects and organizations, and to cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
In just a few days a small team from Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church (CCPC) will look to make their way to Juárez, Mexico for what the 28th time in a nearly 34-year history. Save for a period of a few years when the church deemed it unsafe to travel to Juárez with the drug cartel violence and in 2020 with the boarder closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the church has sought to go down each year and make an impact in the neighborhood just a stone’s throw from the boarder fence.
La Iglesia Maranatha and Pastor Jorge Mata have been firmly planted in the Felipe Ángeles neighborhood and community for those many, many years and it’s through this relationship that the Gospel is shared and people are encouraged in their faith. The mission trip sees several church families combine to lead VBS (vacation bible school) for the children in the neighborhood and to work on several construction projects on the church grounds and in the surrounding neighborhood. The church, within sight of the UTEP (University of Texas – El Paso) campus across the boarder, lives in a shadow of poverty, but the neighborhood is slowly being transformed with jobs and homes being built and people being elevated socially and spiritually by the work of Pastor Jorge and the church.
A team member wrote to request the gear for this year’s trip:
Dear Rev. Kenney, Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church has been blessed with the opportunity to send another mission team to Juarez, Mexico this year to support La Iglesia Maranatha and Pastor Jorge. Our team of eighteen students and adults is looking for donations of any surplus soccer gear to benefit the local kids. As in the past, we will be serving around 80 children through our Vacation Bible School program, in addition to working on several projects in the community. Soccer Chaplains United’s generous donations in the past have made a positive impact and assisted teams to better show generosity and the love of Christ to these kids. We are so grateful for your continued partnership with our church. Thank you.
2022 Juarez Mission Team
The Cherry Creek Prebyterian Church Team of 2021 pauses from playing soccer in the park to take a photo.
In addition to the local work that La Iglesia Maranatha does, Pastor Jorge and the church members have also undertaken several trips into the poorer, and more rural parts of Mexico. Taking donations and other items, the church has traveled long distances to share the Gospel and encouragement with the poorest of the poor in some of the small villages deep within Mexico.
Assembly line for packing donations
Remember, when you support Soccer Chaplains United, a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals or organizations, and cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/K09A4384-scaled.jpg12801920Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2022-10-13 06:00:002024-07-08 23:58:00Cherry Creek Jaunts to Juárez, Mexico for 28th Time
I don’t know if I have shared very often about a special film project known as “My Beautiful Game” (MBG for short). MBG is an “inspiring 90-minute sports documentary profiling the lives of exceptional athletes who have committed their lives to not only their sport of soccer but to helping others through compassion, generosity, and social justice. A feel-good film that showcases the humanity in soccer while experiencing all the action and excitement surrounding both professional and amateur competition.”
I’ve gotten to know Martin Butler (director/producer), Brian Bird (exec. producer), and Scott Pomeroy (exec. producer) over the past few years and I really love the vision for the film to tell the story of football that goes beyond the pitch and into athletes lives. As a chaplain for some 20+ years in professional soccer, I’ve seen a lot of story-telling. Usually the story is about victory and paralleled with one’s ability to have spiritual victory, as well. But what space do we have for telling stories of defeat, of grief and loss — on the field and off the field?
Martin and his team with MBG, have just entered into the post-production phase after scouring the world and beginning to tell stories from familiar faces here in the US and globally. With the rise and fall of football and everything that happens on the field of the beautiful game and the field of life — there is a compelling story that is beginning to take shape. Several athletes have opened their football careers, their homes, their lives and told the more vulnerable parts of their story — all with the aim of helping people understand what the Beautiful Game (for them) is really all about.
MBG has an aim to finalize the story-telling in time for this year’s World Cup — and with the groundswell in soccer right now, I have to say, MBG seems poised to tell an important story at an important time. Of course, with any venture such as this one, there is always need — financial needs, prayer support needs, and more. Martin and his team have had to fight through a pandemic and many different challenges to work to bring these stories to light. I’d love it if you take a look at what Martin and his team are doing and perhaps you have an interest to help advance the story-telling.
Two quick ways that you can help:
Partner — easy to be informed, to pray for the project and team members, and find other ways to become involved including donating to the non-profit group behind the film
Invest — funding film projects might be something God has called you to consider as a big investor, I know Martin will meet personally for coffee, or via phone or zoom with members of his team to help you understand the potential of the film and things like ROI (return on investment)
Soccer Chaplains United is proud to be a part of partnering with Martin and My Beautiful Game and we hope and pray that God provide all that they need to get across the finish line and deliver these compelling stories come World Cup this December 2022.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Screen-Shot-2022-07-14-at-11.38.45-AM-e1657820379666.png558918Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2022-07-15 00:00:002024-07-08 23:59:40My Beautiful Game Enters Post-Production
Late last week, two teams from partner church Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church made their way to Ethiopia and Uganda. Both teams made requests for soccer gear from Soccer Chaplains United’s Community Project request program. You can follow the teams progress and blog updates below.
Ethiopia
This family trip runs from July 9—24. Serving alongside Hope for the Fatherless, an orphan ministry in the capital city of Addis Ababa that seeks to meet the needs of orphaned and vulnerable children and place them in loving families through domestic adoption and reunification, as well as develop a culture of adoption and orphan care in Ethiopia and around the world.
Student ministry trip runs from July 10-26. The team serves once again with Uganda Youth for Christ, who have been CCPC partners in the gospel since the church’s first visit in 2007. This team of Ugandan young people is on the ground every day, serving Christ, sharing the gospel in schools, caring for and equipping teen moms, and being lights in very dark places.
When you financially support Soccer Chaplains United a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community Project from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals projects and organizations, and to cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/oneworldballethiopia2018.jpg899899Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2022-07-14 00:00:002024-07-08 23:59:44CCPC Teams Out to Africa
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