Girls soccer! The power of getting started

Of all the great things about working with the amazing kids in Pleasant Grove, our nonprofit has missed one element so far. It has always bothered me – and I pledged to make some progress toward a correction this year.

We haven’t done a good job of getting girls into our camps and clinics.

If we have a camp for, say, 60 young soccer players from Pleasant Grove, we MIGHT get five or six girls. That’s been about the boy-girl ratio, somewhere around 12-1 or 14-1. On the just-completed 6-week speed and strength program, we had 58 kids registered. Only four were girls – and only two of them stuck with it. We can be as welcoming as we can possibly be, but I’m sure it’s a little intimidating to be one of so few girls in that setting.

None of this was intentional in any way. As we have gathered allies and collaborators in the Pleasant Grove community – teachers, coaches, recreation center directors, etc. –  it just so happens that more of them have been connected to soccer on the boys side. 

It also happens that what little youth soccer infrastructure exists in Southeast Dallas, it’s mostly on the boys side.

So Tuesday, something happened to change that. Or start changing it, we hope.

We ran a community mini-clinic for girls only. And it was fantastic. (And free, by the way!) 

We honestly didn’t know what to expect in terms of participation. But with the help of Ana Sepulveda, our terrific ally at the School for the Talented and Gifted in Pleasant Grove, we had a great day with a bunch of 4th-8th grade girls who (I think!) had a fun day and learned some things in a very positive, fun environment. 

I told Ana on Monday, a day before the clinic, I didn’t care how many girls showed up. If it was six or 60, I’d be thrilled. 

“There is real power in just getting started,” I said. So even without a lot of planning, with just a few flyers distributed to a few schools and a rec center, we got a great group of 20+ out there. It will grow from there – especially with Ana putting together a team from her school, and with the recreation center putting together a team. 

And we’ll do our part to provide some coaching / camps / clinics along the way.