Vancouver, BC: Members of the U11 Pitt Meadows Pride (Girls Select Team) and U11 Pitt Meadows Jr. Caps (U11 Select B Team) have donated over $3,000 for the Haitian Women’s National Team from fundraising efforts in less than day. The funds will be distributed to the Haitian Soccer Association via the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA) and allocated to the development of youth and women’s programs in Haiti.
The 10 and 11 year old girls from Pitt Meadow’s coordinated the drive by Pitt Meadows Soccer Club members and the local community. Chris Begg, President of the Pitt Meadows Soccer Club was able to secure a donation from the club’s Board and an additional generous $500 donation from the West Coast Auto Group. (In 2012/2013, Pitt Meadows and Golden Ears are merging into 1 club under the West Coast Auto Group Football Club).
The girls were inspired by the Haitian Women’s National team who fought tremendous adversity just to appear at the CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifiers in Vancouver following the devastating earthquake that the Caribbean island experienced in January 2010.
Jamie Schwingenschloegl, Coach of the U11 Pitt Meadows Pride & Jr. Caps Teams said, “It was a fantastic experience for the girls and one that I am certain they will remember forever. I have been fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to coach many of these kids for several years and they are role models within our club and within our community. They understand the importance of competition and fair play but more importantly the need to give back to their local community”.
In the past year alone, the two teams have gone door-to-door and collected over 2,000 items of food for our local Food Bank during the Holiday Season and raised over $1,000 that they donated to the Canadian Tire Jumpstart Program. The club itself is also part of a boot swap during a club tournament that generates hundreds of dollars each year that goes towards KidSport, providing support to children in order to remove financial barriers that prevent them from playing organized sport.
Charlie Cuzzetto, President of BC Soccer said, “The girls of Pitt Meadows are an inspiration to their local community and the money they have raised for Haitian team will really help as the association continues to rebuild its soccer programme after it was decimated in 2010”.
Hair Massacure is an annual event organized by the MacDonald family of Morinville. Daughter Kali MacDonald inspired the event during her battle with childhood cancer when she lost her hair three times during treatment. She has now been in remission for 8 years, and continues to be an inspiration.
