Sport in Action receives a donation from US charity for its work in Romania

New US charity looks to partner with the Proton Foundation to make soccer accessible to young people in  deprived communities of Romania.

	PlaySoccer2Give is a new US charity based in New York.  It aims are simple - "Stay Fit, Kick a Ball and Do Good." The charity encourages recreational soccer players of all levels to get together and organise friendly matches, whilst at the same time giving back to community  sports good causes. The charity currently supports work in Columbia and also at home in the South Bronx.
	Danny Hoyos, founder and leader of the charity, was put in contact with the Proton Foundation Sport in Action team.  There was an immediate heart connect with the community sports development work taking place in Romania, specifically with the young people in the poor and deprived rural community of Poiana on the eastern side of the country. "By organising soccer pick up games, we can give back to those less fortunate and help provide them with healthy snacks, soccer equipment and other basic needs.  Either way, we're making an impact and spreading the beauty of the game."
	"There are millions of children across the globe that play this game every day with torn shoes or even bare feet.  They create soccer balls out of the most basic materials.  They play in dirt patches and concrete.  They use rocks as goals and dream to be the next Messi. They live and breath soccer.  Some have more skills at the age of nine than we have.  They are our inspiration to impact our communities while promoting healthier lifestyles and habits."
	Proton's Sport in Action programme is supporting the community work of Scottish couple Alex and Heather Chalmers.  A visit to Poiana by Sport in Action Director, Steve Wright in May 2010, saw the creation of a soccer pitch at the community centre run by the couple.  The pitch was immediately in use by the local children and young adults.
	To help develop the soccer programme further, PlaySoccer2Give has donated £1000 towards the project.  This money will go towards buying new goal posts, lighting, kit, boots and healthy snacks.  Danny and his wife will be travelling to visit the project at the end of September, to see first hand for themselves how the funds will be put to good use.

But the community work doesn't just begin and end with soccer, planning permission has been approved for the centre to build a new extension to provide indoor sports programmes.  Whilst the Chalmers have received lots of support in the way of offers of equipment they are desperately raising  funds for the actual build, which is estimated to be in the region of £20,000.

The Sport in Action team are hoping to partner further with Playsoccer2give and other similar sports charities in the future, seeing further funding released for the broader national project work with Teen Challenge in Bucharest.  Other charities are also currently exploring ways of partnering with Proton to see sports transform communities in Romania.  Two UK based teams are planning to visit Bucharest in 2012 to take soccer to the streets, raising the profile of the project in the capital city and working with Teen Challenge to reach the street children and young adults.

Get Involved - You Can Support Sport In Action??

There are lots of opportunities to get involved with Sport in Action:

- Donate funds - you can give online, simply mark your giving with Sport in Action or the specific project you wish your gift to go to.

- Sponsor a Sport in Action Apprentice - £6,000 would put a young adult through the apprenticeship programme; equipping and training young men for a  career in community sports.

- Donate equipment - we are looking for individuals, charities or corporate sponsors who can donate sports equipment, clothing, footwear and healthy eating snacks and drinks.

- Visit Romania - we are looking for more groups of people who would like to visit Romania and take part in community sports activities - delivering coaching programmes and working alongside our Sport in Action team.

If you would like to express an interest in Sport in Action  contact the This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

[Read more about the work in Poiana and other Romania communities]