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Mission: To fulfill the charitable objectives of the orlando city soccer club by promoting a healthy lifestyle through the sport of soccer through education. Promote a healthy lifestyle through the sport of soccer that enables children and families to reach their full potential by providing soccer programs, nutrition, education, mentoring, and by making strategic investments in the neediest areas of our community.
Programs: Our goals for 2017 were to positively impact the health and wellness of our community through a variety of outreach endeavors and investments. We achieved this through building safe places to play - mini pitches - while adding soccer programming and community gardens. We included our supporters in all of our initiatives as the overall plan of the club is to be a community asset and a place for people to turn in both good and bad times. To further that purpose we continued our soccer for success program which consists of providing free soccer programs in 10 locations where we teach soccer skills, nutrition education and healthy lifestyle choices to over 300 children (90 minutes, 3 times per week). We are strong advocates against discrimination of any kind and have become a voice for our lgbtq community, installing the 49 rainbow seats in our stadium, becoming involved in lgbtq organizations, and sponsoring our local 'come out with pride' parade and activities.
7 community gardens have been built and 3 are near mini pitch locations, plus one stand alone garden. Over 75 families use the gardens plus the 300 children from the mini pitches. The gardens allow residents the ability to grow their own fresh food and improve the quality of their diet. In 2017 we partnered with the city of orlando to open the largest community garden in the city's footprint at lake druid. Community residents can opt- in to tend a bed of their own, as well as volunteer to tend beds that benefit local organizations. There is a special breast cancer garden that benefits local residents going through treatment that was co-sponsored by musician melissa etheridge. We also provided a fence for the boys & girls club of central florida to protect their community garden.
in 2017 we opened an additional mini pitch in the englewood florida area. We now have 4 mini pitches in urban, under-served areas. Each mini pitch provides after school programs for tutoring, reading, and various activities, 3 times per week.
funded the special olympics unified sports soccer exchange program allowing the athletes to travel with the mls team, stay in the team hotel and play a special olympics team after the mls game. We traveled to ny/nj to play against the new york red bulls and played in the atlanta united. We also provided the following donations: soccer equipment donated to community centers, nonprofit orgs, and local soccer programs valued at 20k 400 backpacks stocked with school supplies for underserved youth valued at 5k 500 turkeys, plus the fixings, for our local, underserved neighbors valued at 15k provided financial and other resources for hurricane irma relief valued at 15k