Sifte Radio

Tag: Community

  • Finding the Value of Youth Sports

    time lapse photography of group of people jumping on seashore under golden hour

    Growing up in the USA, soccer was never the most popular sport. Unlike traditional American pastimes such as football, baseball, or basketball, soccer often found itself in a secondary position. I dabbled in those other sports, but soccer was the one that stuck with me.

    My love for soccer was nurtured by my German dad and family, especially my opa. Reflecting on it, it wasn’t necessarily the technical aspects of the game that created this bond. It wasn’t just the act of kicking the ball or scoring a goal. While those moments of success were thrilling, they weren’t the main reasons. It was something deeper that transcended the sport itself. It was about the memories, the love, and the connection it fostered with my friends, family, and community. The passion came from times spent kicking the ball with my dad and opa in our cul-de-sac in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the summer days in Germany playing with friends and watching the national team in the evenings.

    Soccer has remained a way for me to connect with people as I moved from Charlotte to Switzerland and back, eventually settling in Washington. Now a sophomore at Peninsula High School, I’ve made many friends through my high school and club teams. For me, the love for a sport is more about the people and memories associated with it than the game itself. Youth sports offer more than just fitness; they provide a place to connect with the community and create lasting memories. They also teach values like hard work and respect through competition.

    I started playing premier soccer for Harbor Premier in 2021 and experienced both positive and negative moments under different coaches and team cultures. There were times when pressure and struggles made me hate the game. This sentiment was shared by many of my peers. Youth sports can sometimes make you lose the love for the game that brought you to it.

    In May, Harbor Soccer hired a new director, Jason McGlothern, whose philosophy and German background intrigued me. McGlothern, a former Elite Clubs National Coach at PacNW soccer club in Tukwila, emphasizes the importance of culture in a soccer club. Born in Germany, he also learned to love the game from his opa.

    McGlothern moved to Washington at five and played for clubs like PacNW, Eastside FC, and later the Sounders Academy. In 2010, he spent a year with the academy of 1. FC Nuremberg in the Bundesliga. His journey taught him many lessons he now applies to coaching and directing. He shared that even at a high level, it’s easy to lose sight of why you started playing. “When I got to Germany with 1. FC Nuremberg, you start to forget the days you played just because you purely loved the game.”

    At Harbor, McGlothern aims to develop a culture that instills values and prepares players for life. He believes that winning is a byproduct of development and emphasizes nurturing a love for the game. “We’re always looking to be the best, but winning isn’t development.”

    Playing youth sports means different things to different people. For some, it’s a fun pastime; for others, it’s a full-time commitment that may lead to professional or collegiate athletics. Soccer, cherished by millions worldwide, offers a joyful experience to many in our community.

    As I approach the end of my time at Harbor Premier and Peninsula High School, I hope to contribute to a culture that fosters positive values and a love for the game.

    Jonas Koller is a sophomore at Peninsula High School.

     

    Source: keypennews

  • Toronto’s Pride Parade Chaos: Protesters Halt Celebrations Mid-Route in Major Setback

    Thousands of people danced, sang, and celebrated at Toronto’s Pride Parade on Sunday until the procession was suddenly stopped mid-route and then cancelled by a protest.

    About 30 demonstrators, calling themselves the Coalition Against Pinkwashing, held banners and chanted on Yonge Street, just south of Wellesley Street, three and a half hours after the parade’s 2 p.m. start. Floats and marchers making their way south toward the parade’s finish at Nathan Phillips Square were stranded behind the protesters, who chanted “Free Palestine” and “Pride is a protest.”

    Forty-five minutes after the protest began, Pride Toronto announced the remainder of the parade — billed as Canada’s largest — was cancelled.

    “We made the decision to cancel the remainder of the parade out of our commitment to ensuring public safety,” Pride Toronto spokesperson Anna Lee said in a statement. “While we deeply respect and uphold everyone’s right to peacefully protest, our foremost priority is the well-being of all participants and spectators.”

    According to a pamphlet handed out by the group, the protesters had six demands, chief among them the divestment from all corporations “actively involved in violently exploiting native people” on Turtle Island and in Sudan, Palestine, and the Congo.

    “We’re here for Palestine,” protester Layla Salman said. “We’re here to draw attention to the cause.”

    Toronto police gathered further down the parade route but did not take any action with the protesters, who left Yonge Street about two hours after they shut it down and marched west along Wellesley Street on the sidewalk. Police said they had “adequate resources to address the protest,” but were respecting Pride Toronto’s request that officers not interfere if protesters disrupted the parade, police spokesperson Laurie McCann told the Star.

    It was not an unfamiliar situation. In 2016, a Black Lives Matter group brought the parade to a standstill when it stopped its float for more than 30 minutes — similarly refusing to move until officials met their demands. The parade continued after Pride leaders signed the list of demands on the spot.

    But this year, the demands went unsigned. Protester Faisal Samir said Pride Toronto offered a meeting to “think about” the demands.

    And while the protesters sat in the street and chanted, the party continued just a few blocks over. Celebrations and bass-heavy music continued on Church Street, where vendors lined the pavement and restaurants overflowed.

    That was the atmosphere for most of the day along the parade route as spectators pressed against metal barricades, five deep at points, for the entirety of the 2.5-kilometre route, dancing, singing, and cheering as business groups and organizations marched by.

    That included SIBOL, the Filipino-Canadian Pride Network that formed last June. The group danced and waved the flag of the Philippines as it celebrated its first anniversary.

    “There was no formal organization like us before,” said Leo Gubac, one of the group’s founders. “That was a source of inspiration for us. Why don’t we create one for this group of people in the community, so we can find community and camaraderie together?”

    The group wasn’t alone. As many as 500 of the 1,760 volunteers registered for this year’s Pride celebrations were believed to be recent arrivals to Canada, something Pride Toronto’s education and volunteer manager attributed to the flood of legislation and violence against LGBTQ communities around the world.

    The volunteers helped facilitate the parade, a mammoth march with hundreds of groups participating. Floats blared Britney Spears’ “Toxic” and “Womanizer” while drag queens danced and a TV helicopter circled overhead.

    Chris Collens drove in from Kitchener, Ont., to march with his company, the Ontario Teachers Insurance Program. The company provided him with a Pride shirt — but he “had a vision” for the rest of the outfit.

    So he added rainbow sunglasses, suspenders, a hat and a bow tie. And then there was the centerpiece: rainbow pants with peace signs and music notes, purchased on a trip to Chicago, Ill. this spring specifically for the parade.

    “The pants say it all,” said Collens, who has marched in the parade since 2017. “You can’t walk five minutes down the street without people stopping for our look. But it’s been great. Everybody’s been so social, so friendly, so fun. It’s just a great time.”

    source: thestar.com