Community

On Friday, April 29, 2016, the US Medical Soccer Team partnered with the US National Committee for UN Women – Houston for a day of youth outreach.  We took our program, “Healthy, Fit and Smart” to Hartman Middle School and Jones Futures Academy in Houston, Texas for two outstanding events as part of the UN Women’s Global Health Summit.  Both programs were a huge success, with over 500 kids participating.  Many thanks go to the staff and faculty at both schools, with Dr Kedrick Little (Hartman) and Ms Vickie Jones (Jones) deserving specific accolades for putting together a great day for the kids.  The entire program would not have been possible without the support and organization of Dr Rena Menard, Dave Cameron and the USNC-UN Women.  Finally, special thanks go to Nicole from Terumo, Kathryn and Aaron from Sonosite, and Andrew from Stryker Corporation for taking time out of their busy schedules to join us on this special day!            

On Wednesday, July 1, 2015, the US Medical Soccer Team hosted the first ever “Healthy, Fit and Smart” Kids Day on the campus of Long Beach State University.  Over 200 local youth from the Long Beach Boys and Girls Clubs enjoyed a fun morning dedicated to fitness, nutrition, and education.  With the help of many of our international friends participating in the 2015 World Medical Football Championships, USMST displayed their enthusiasm for our signature outreach program designed to enable children to improve their lives through lifestyle and a focus on school.  Many thanks to our sponsors as well as the Long Beach Boys and Girls Club for an incredible event that enriched the 2015 WMFC and helped our organization’s efforts in spreading an important message to our nation’s youth.  

On June 6, 2014, USMST shared an amazing afternoon of fun, education and of course, soccer at the Boys and Girls Club of Elgin, Illinois.  During their last practice weekend prior to leaving for the 2014 World Medical Football Championships in Natal, Brazil, USMST had the privilege of taking their Healthy, Fit and Smart outreach program to the Chicago area.  The kids were incredibly enthusiastic and took time out of their summer routine to join USMST.  With the valuable assistance of Lauren Boaz of the Elgin Boys and Girls Club, the team and participants had a great time and look forward to future programs geared towards nutrition, fitness and education. Mauricio Pleitez put together a great video of the afternoon:                                    

On April 25, 2014, the US Medical Soccer Team paid a visit to the Washington DC Boys and Girls Club Jelleff Community Center during their practice weekend in our nation’s capitol.  The team was honored to collaborate with DC United and their team mascot, Talon, who helped engage the children in USMST’s youth outreach program, “Healthy, Fit and Smart”.  The American Heart Association also lent it’s support by providing prizes and small gifts, which was a huge motivating factor for all the kids!  Many thanks to Bob Stowers, Dominique Cherry and all the great staff at the Boys and Girls Club for a fun-filled, educational afternoon.   Check out the pictures below and a video put together by our resident A/V expert, Maurcio:    

On Friday, January 10th, the members of the US Medical Soccer Team visited the Boys and Girls Club in Long Beach, CA for a fantastic afternoon of fun and learning. Their program, “Healthy, Fit and Smart” was presented in an enjoyable, interactive fashion and highlighted the teams commitment to nutrition, fitness, education, and general well-being in our nation’s youth. The team was joined by members of the LA Galaxy “Street Team”, whose inflatable goal and awesome giveaways were definitely a highlight! The team looks forward to similar programs at our future practice sites.

During our weekend soccer practice on April 20, 2013, the US Medical Soccer Team spent a fun morning with the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Ana, California. Ky Tran, Paulo Carvalho, Ray Klug and Chris Grybauskas led the way in creating a fun health fair for the kids focusing on nutrition, fitness, and careers in health care. All the USMST members attending the practice participated and so many put a big effort into making it a special event, including Amir Saz and Mauricio Pleitez. By all accounts, the kids had as much fun as we did! Many thanks to Lily, Merin, Kathy, Anna, and Margaret for showing their support and providing some incredible female role models. Your time and efforts are sincerely appreciated and we can’t wait to do more events with the USMST Wives and Girlfriends in the future. Special kudos go to Lily and Chris for their unbelievable nutrition station with Jeopardy, Trail Mix and arm wrestling! Merin and Ray also deserve special recognition for a fantastic tour-de-force presentation on medical careers — the always professorial Ray ensured the kids left with all the right answers! And finally, Paulo showed why he is our resident fitness expert — his obstacle course will surely be part of our future training sessions! Mauricio put together this great video commemorating the event: Finally, Many thanks to Peter at the Boys and Girls Club and to all the kids and parents who made the event truly special! We look forward to doing it again soon and expanding on our efforts.

On March 8, 2012, Gautam Nayak was invited to speak to the Omak High School Soccer Team in Omak, Washington. He spent an enjoyable afternoon discussing cardiovascular issues for athletes, the importance of education for their future, and the various activities of USMST. It was a fantastic opportunity to connect with the youth in his community and will likely lead to further participation as a representative of USMST in local youth soccer activities in the future.