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Mario Sanchez
Final Paper
8/14/2014

Field of Dreams
During my time in Ghana I was able to capture several moments in which I found
appreciation of the culture, people, relationships, food, and the passion for Futbol or
Soccer as we call it in America. The passion for Futbol in Ghana had a culture of its own.
It was filled with laughter, joy, friendly competition, and most specifically hope. In the
short time I was able to enjoy being in the beautiful country of Ghana I was able to
capture the joy Futbol provided to communities. During the study exploration we
explored cities such as Cape Coast, Kasoa, Accra, and the Nyanyano community. I saw
countless amounts of soccer fields in the area made up from nice green grass, chalk on
the dirt floors, and chairs and trees as goal posts. Futbol was everywhere. It was on
billboards, television, drinks, and on pretty much anything you can think of. It was one of
the most prevalent things captured in my mind during the beginning of my trip in Ghana.
But as I began my Public Health service project based around the issue of
Teenage Pregnancy I noticed several humanitarian issues such as sanitation, sex
education, poverty rates, school costs, and child trafficking. These issues were also
plastered on billboards and visible in communities in which we worked with but as well
visible through the villages and communities we passed while on our 20 plus passenger
bus. Then I began thinking of how much joy every child I saw playing soccer had and it
reminded me of when I was child. When I was a young boy my friends and I would
throw a baseball around or go play basketball to get our minds off the several issues we
had at home or at school. Issues such as bullying, growing in a single parent household or

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avoiding the friends who wanted to indulge in criminal activity. As I reflected I noticed
that I was able to keep my self out the streets and out of trouble because of my love of
sports. The reason was because of the hope that it provided for me. Growing up I wanted
to be a Basketball player always out in the courts sticking my tongue out like Michael
Jordan or trying to replicate but never duplicate the Allen Iverson crossover.
As I saw the children out in the dirt fields or the nice green lawn kicking,
dribbling, or playing with the Futbol I saw that same hope in their eyes. I saw that spark
and the passion they had for the sport. They had love for the game that provided them
with so much more than just competition but it brought them the joy to forget about all
their worries. On the fields you would see these boys and girls play soccer at the age they
could start walking. As they grew older the fields did become pre-dominantly males
because of social views of Futbol players but within the schools in Kasoa I would ask
countless kids what they wanted to be when they were older, regardless of gender the
children responded almost in unison Futbol Player. It struck me. It opened my eyes and
my mind of how much love Ghanaians had for the sport.
So the idea sparked in my mind! What if there was a Non-Governed Organization
(NGO) or program supported by an NGO founded on the passion of Futbol. It would be
based on based on the principles of Mentorship, Education, Community Service, and
Identity development. In the study Supporting healthy communities through sports and
recreation program it states, Linking sports and recreation programs with other services
and opportunities (for example, health services or counseling; jobs or more relevant
educational programs) improves the uptake of these allied services. This assists in
developing links to other important programs for improving health and wellbeing

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outcomes, or behavioral change. Establishing a program that would be based off the love
of Futbol and creating requirements for the youth to engage in the activity they love but
only if with requirement of fulfilling attendance of academic workshops, story time
activities and other beneficial activities would increase the likelihood of positive
outcomes. The enjoyment that active or passive participation in these activities generated
is both intrinsically beneficial and a powerful hook for engaging communities in
programs with other social or personal development objectives (Hartmann 2003).
Another great reason to establish a program such as this in several communities not only
with in Ghana but around the world is it is meant to promote and develop a community of
leaders, mentors, and citizens from with in the organization. It would be a great asset to
any community development for the youth to feel engage with one another but as well
with adult community leaders.
As reported in the Awake Africa Website in an article written by Emmanual Ato
Yamoah it reported the Paramount Chief Royal Highness Obirempon Nyamfo Krampah
XI of the Gomoa Ajumako Traditional Area out of kindness and generosity gave a total of
1000 acres of land to the now Queen mother Ohemaa Nana Adjoa Zynovia I. As a
traditional government controls over these lands the support of a program such as this
would come from the traditional hierarchical structure. As the common thread discussed
in the article The Role of Traditional Rulers in Ghanas Socio-Economic Development
states the roles of these traditional rulers are meant to be custodians of ancestral and
community land; the custodians of culture, customary laws and traditions including
history; the initiators and champions of development activities in their respective areas of
jurisdiction. (Asumadu, 2006)

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A program such as this would work alongside the traditional chiefs in the area to
support their ideals and needs for developing the community. As discussed in the article Supporting Healthy Communities through Sports and Recreation Program, recreational
programs help youth develop their identity but also help create social inclusion in
practicing traditional culture. (Ware et al., 2013) Learn about their culture and reach back
to their roots. In the article the land of 1000 acres will now be called Gamoa Sankofa,
which Sankofa means in Akan language of Ghana that translates in English to " reach
back and get it". Finding the roots of your story and background. One of the programs
principles is identity development in which we would take the time to help develop
leaders, mentors, productive citizens but as well work on their traditional culture. From
here on out I will be going through the four principles in which this program is going to
be based off of and what activities would be intertwined with the program. Following
these principles I will establish the outcomes desired for Field of Dreams and how it
would be an asset to a community in the process of development.
Mentorship
As studies have suggested in several countries mentorship plays a pivotal role in a
youths life in behavior and outcome decisions. As stated in the journal The Value of
Mentoring, students who meet regularly with their mentors are 52% less likely than their
peers to skip a day of school and 37% less likely to skip a class. At the very least
Mentorship provides support for a youth to give them comfort that they are not going
through this alone. Mentorship provides the youth with an opportunity to work alongside
someone they feel is a role model or someone they feel they can trust discussing issues
with at home or at school. During the programs beginning stages we would begin

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working with youth regardless of age, who would like to begin learning to further
develop their soccer skills and themselves. As the program develops it would maintain an
emphasis on participant retention of alumni or older teens so it could establish and build a
mentorship/tutoring program with in the organization. The initial requirement for the
students to do is to attend a minimum of 90% of practices with the requirement of also
attending academic workshops/hours, activities, and talks. According to the article Invest
in Gomoa Ajumako Obirempon Krampah, the article states that Obirempon Krampah,
who doubles as the President of the Gomoa Ajumako Traditional Council, said most of
the youth were usually seen engaging in activities that were harmful to their lives, all due
to the lack of business people to invest in the area. Due to high rate of unemployment
and high rate of harmful activities that youth engage in these communities a program
such as this would be able to become a home for children to learn, engage with the
community and empower each other. The 2013 study The Role of Risk: Mentoring
Experiences and Outcomes for Youth with Varying Risk Profiles, Overall, the studys
results suggest that mentoring programs can be beneficial for youth with a broad range of
backgrounds and characteristics. Tailoring the training and support that is available to
match the specific risks youth face in the community it has the potential to produce even
stronger benefits.
Community
The next principle is Community. The sense of community is always needed in
developing a strong foundation for organizations, work environments and especially in a
developing village. The program would take an inclusive approach to look into the
community needs and desires. Asking the local leaders and villagers to establish what

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they want from a community and what community services the children would be able to
be the most productive. Activities would also include family inclusion with fun days and
activities for parents to get to know the organization better. Having families, leaders, and
youth coming together building a strong foundation for the community. Developing a
community is work done by a group of people. Every successful individual knows that
his or her achievement depends on a community of persons working together. by Paul
Ryan. For a program such as this, the goal is to establish achievements as a community
and to work alongside the leaders of the village. The reasoning behind this work is to
create a culture of volunteerism and develop future citizens who contribute to their
communities. It is meant to begin a cycle of positive volunteerism through the
organization and to empower not only one another but also the ones around you.
Education

Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community
and world better than you found It. said Marian Wright Edelman. In this program we
would like to establish what we call culture of success. With keeping education at the
forefront of our goals it would be a great opportunity to engage students in the activity of
recreational Futbol intertwined with educational activities. In Ghana communities issues
such as Teenage Pregnancy, Tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and several other issues could be
resolved or prevented with proper education. To be a part of this program you would have
to fulfill the requirements of attending academic workshops/hours twice a week where
there will be tutors/volunteers who will have a space available facilitate tutorial sessions
and academic workshops in the various subjects of writing, math, science, and reading.
The following requirements would also include bi-weekly talks and discussions of

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cultural, public health, motivational speakers, and other beneficial activities.
Identity Development
One of the most important principles in which this program if founded on is the
identity development of these youth. Our goal is to build strong leaders for the future who
will be prepared in the work of service, business, or in any occupation the youth desires.
Our goal is to build on this youths strengths of compassion, hopes, dreams, and love of
soccer to become the future Pele of Ghana or to become the future revolutionary as
Kwame. Our goal through activities such as traditional dancing and music, hip life,
traditional story telling, and learning more about their own history. The program would
be established with the goals of the children being positive role models for a prospering
future. Identity development in indigenous communities have used the strategy of
combining sports activities and recreation as way to engage students in school and
improve the range of cognitive and social skills. Such as self-confidence, cultural
identity, pride, goal setting, cooperation and conflict resolution. (Lonsdale et al. 2011)
Such as the field house project this NGO program would not be able to be
established without any fundraising or support from outside the community. Fundraisers
would be developed from the Seattle area but also throughout various communities in
Washington. It would be made through a campaign of support to help children of Ghana
to develop a prospering community with proper facilities, institutions, sanitation, water
wells, and universities with quality education. The campaign would be established
through social media, e-mail, galas, raffles, and effective event marketing. As the time
would be going forward the program would use this money to help build a facility and
soccer field for the children to store their sport equipment.

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The goal of the community service portion of this program would be to help youth
feel, as a productive member in creating and developing the community of Gamoa
Sonkafo. In the special and remarkable case such as this where the Royal Highness
Obirempon Nyamfo Krampah X desires to have queen mother Ohemaa Nana Adjoa
Zynivia I develop a community with a beautiful future. A program such as this would
begin from the ground up, from the youth up. As the community that has a vast amount of
land, a soccer field would be able to be cleared out with the opportunity of constructing
two goal post and official lines for the field. This would be the first step in creating this
program. As the land is being developed it would be a great opportunity to use the love of
Futbol in this country to move forward in creating a community while engaging the youth
in their love.
As we develop the program, the children academic success and commitment to
service would bring positivity to the program but a stronger sense of community. With
this stronger sense of community there would call for a stronger support from more
traditional African governance for programs around Ghana. As the program would allow
the Paramount chief to invest in his communitys culture, communities land, and
champion their development of the communities. The program would be formed and
molded to what the community desires and needs. As Anthony J. D'Angelo stated,
Without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community. The main and strong
focus of this program is based on the love for each other and neighbors as together we
will develop the land of sankofa and the love for soccer will unite the youth.

Citations
Dr., K. A. (2006, July 8). The role of traditional rulers in Ghana's socio-economic
development. modernghana.com. Retrieved August 14, 2014, from
http://www.modernghana.com/news/118850/1/the-role-of-traditional-rulers-in-ghanassocio-eco.html
The Value of Mentoring. (n.d.). MENTOR: Expanding the world of quality mentoring..
Retrieved August 20, 2014, from http://www.mentoring.org/about_mentor/v
Yamoah, E. A. (n.d.). University of Washington Students and Faculty Members Pay
Courtesy Call on Paramount Chief of Gomoa Ajumako.. Awake Africa RSS. Retrieved
August 20, 2014, from http://awakeafrica.org/university-of-washington-students-andfaculty-members-pay-courtesy-call-on-paramount-chief-ofgomoa/#sthash.UpwgL4MD.reuHvfGS.dpbs
The Fieldhouse Project. (n.d.). The Fieldhouse Project. Retrieved August 14, 2014, from
http://fieldhouseproject.org
Ware V-A & Meredith V 2013. Supporting healthy communities through sports and
recreation programs. Resource sheet no. 26. Produced for the Closing the Gap
Clearinghouse. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare & Melbourne:
Australian Institute of Family Studies.