Equipment Count From Pittsburgh

Wow! Many thanks are due to Emilie, a Dorseyville Middle Schooler who recently engaged her family, friends, classmates, and neighbors in a soccer gear collection project for her bat mitzvah!! We just completed an inventory of all of the equipment donated by the Fox Chapel and surrounding Pittsburgh Communities!!

Here is what we got:

84 pair of soccer shoes
84 pair of soccer socks
78 soccer balls
51 individual jerseys
43 shin guards (used)
22 shin guards (brand new)
5 goalie gloves
4 complete uniforms (includes 12-14 matching jerseys and shorts)

One Mission: Improve the lives of African Youth.

We do not intend to accomplish this simply by handing out soccer equipment!!

Pittsburgh's soccer gear will facilitate weekly after school soccer sessions which incorporate life skills and health education in 10 schools in Kumba, Cameroon during the 2011-2012 school year.

Pittsburgh's soccer gear will reward youth who excel on the soccer field and who are engaged in discussion with their peers. The gear will be leveraged as an incentive to encourage individual participation and community involvement.

Pittsburgh's soccer gear will empower youth who may never have played the game with shoes or shin guards.

Salud-o, Yinzers!!!


Look at all those shoes!!!

Construction of CFDP Office Near Complete

It’s Official! CFDP will have a place of business in the Kumba Main Market by the end of the month! A local businessman in Kumba has converted a portion of his warehouse into an office for CFDP. A project which began in December 2010 – constructing dry-wall dividers and knocking out an own entryway from a concrete block wall – will soon be complete!

I first met Mr. Josephat Nweke while working on the Barombi Water Project in 2008. I had just arrived in Cameroon after graduating from UD (most of my classmates were at Dayton 2 Daytona) and upon connecting with Mr. Benjamin Feh, our local water engineer contact, we jumped right into things. Our first concern was materials – pipes, appurtenances, cement, gravel, sand, and tools for construction. Benjamin knew exactly where to go. He led me to the Kumba Main Market to one shop which sold plumbing materials and sink fixtures. I would soon come to learn the proprietor, Mr. Nweke, had a long history of working in rural water supply. The wealth of knowledge between him and Benjamin was far past my own as a novice civil engineer and their involvement in the Barombi Water Project was vital to our success.

Nweke sold us pipes. He most certainly gave us the best deal in town on top-quality materials. He soon became a very good friend to me and the other civil engineering students who were a part of the project. “The Hardware Man”, as we affectionately referred to him, was involved in our activities throughout the two months we stayed in country. He was a part of the team.

When I returned to Cameroon in July 2010, I made sure to pay a visit to Nweke at his store in the Main Market. Once he learned of the objectives of the Cameroon Football Development Program, he immediately wanted to get involved and I could see the wheels turning in his head during our first, short sit down.

I met up with Nweke on the last day of my very short, two-week stay in Cameroon. He invited me and Peter over to his house for dinner. Beaming, he then proposed his idea to give CFDP an office, rent-free, for a few years as we gain momentum. Needless to say, I was speechless.

Soon our management team in Cameroon will have a place to do business, like any other serious non-government organization (NGO). No more waiting in line at the internet café for a computer to use. No more trekking across town with all types of paperwork to make copies or use a printer. We will have a place for our organization and people to call HOME and a foundation for a great and sustainable future in Cameroon.

Thank you, Mr. Josephat Nweke!

A Story of Cameroon

Today I want to take some time to write about a very close friend of mine and tell of the amazing things she is doing in Cameroon right now.

I met my sister Nina Ngassa back in 2006. It was my first time in Cameroon and I lived with her family for five weeks in the Fiango neighborhood of Kumba. I was working with the Organisation for Sustainable Rural Infrastructure (OSRI) whose office is opposite the High Court. It was something like a 9 to 5.

When I wasn't traveling to remote villages to meet with traditional leaders and water management committees or trekking through the bush (jungle) to identify potential sources for water supply, I spent much time in the Ngassa compound on All For God Street. The 12-foot high concrete wall surrounding the grocery store proprietor's home provided security from the sometimes-rough surrounding area of Fiango. Inside the compound, I found a new home in the conversations with my brothers and sisters. Natalie and Nina were finishing up high school and preparing to attend the University of Buea. Junior was a very intelligent and very stubborn young man of about 10. Even at that age, he was a nationalist and did not let me forget what 'my fathers' did to his African ancestors. Terrance, or Small T, was a young teen who lived with the Ngassas and cherished any time spent outside of the fortress-like compound...talking to neighborhood girls and sneaking in sweets when he could. He is tall now. Big T, their older brother named Terrance, was away at university so I did not see him all that much. He now lives in the United Kingdom.

I learned much about family from our conversations. Nina was a rebel. She followed suit when she had to, but never hesitated to voice her discontent with anything her Mom required of her. Ma Ngassa doesn't play either. She runs a tight ship. Nina and I had an instant draw...I guess because we both aim to be revolutionaries... Our conversations went deeper and we shared our dreams with eachother. Wide-eyed as we were - and still may be - we both saw our futures in Cameroon.

Nina studied Law at the University of Buea in the Southwest Region. She graduated in 2009. Her Mom and Dad encouraged her to enter another training school to pursue a position within one of the Ministries of the Government. Nina wanted to make movies. About a year ago - right about the time I started talking to Peter and Brian about starting CFDP - Nina began writing a screenplay for her first feature film.

After six months of writing, she assembled a production crew and struggled to find the much-needed financial backing to secure a Nigerian movie star as the lead and cover all other filmmaking expenditures. Pre-production planning began in November 2010 and all things are now in place to begin filming by the end of March for the 10-14 day shoot. Much of the filming will be done in the beach town of Limbe, on the Atlantic coast.

The red carpet premier is planned for May 17th in Buea. With this endeavor, she sets her sights on becomming one of the biggest producers in Cameroon. I only hope we should be so lucky to see a CFDP documentary as one of her future projects. I admire my sister Nina's ambition, persistence, and dedication. This is a story of Cameroon. This is a story of Africa.


Justin

Let the Fundraising Begin!

Our Friends in Montreal - FSS Salaberry Coach and Players - are so innovative when it comes to fundraising!!

They recently booked their flights to Cameroon and will arrive in Douala on July 3rd! As a result, the young players (age 19-23) quickly learned how important it is to raise funds for THEIR OWN travel and living expenses while in country.

They wrapped presents at a local shopping mall in December.

As a team,they created a Goal-a-Thon for their Winter Indoor Soccer Season. Each of the players traveling asked their friends and family to each pledge something per goal, usually $1.

They have scored over 50 goals so far.


They are planning a Spaghetti Dinner and have had a "Dance Club Night".

But this is the icing on the cake...

Next Tuesday two FSS players, Simon and Gaelle, are heading into the studio for an interview to be on a game show!

Des Skelettes Dans le Placards (Skeletons in the Closet) is a game show in which three celebrities present what appears to be an embarrassing story about themselves. Two of these 'skeletons in the closet' are true. One is false. Two teams of 25 participants go head to head to determine who is telling the truth. The host asks questions to help the teams figure out which story belongs to which celebrity and vote for which story is not true. The winning team takes home $1000.

GOOD LUCK!!

As we prepare for our own Fundraising Drive this Spring, WE WELCOME ANY IDEAS YOU HAVE!!

Meet the Pen Pals - Part II

So...you have met some of the Cameroonian youth who are participating in CFDP's Premier Pen Pal Program (See Blog Post Below). It's imoprtant to learn more about the players from FSS Salaberry - the soccer club in Montreal - who are partnering with these boys and girls for this fantastic cultural exchange.

The senior players representing FSS Salaberry will spend two weeks in July in Cameroon. They will stay in Kumba as their home base, play LOTS of soccer, travel to a few other cities and suburbs in the Southwest Region, and spend some quality time with their Pen Pals. Did we mention they have organized for an ENTIRE SHIPPING CONTAINER to be filled with donated soccer equipment ?!?! Contributions ranging from soccer balls to entire team sets of jerseys have been donated from people across the North American Continent - from Montreal to Washington, D.C. to Pittsburgh to Minneapolis!! But I digress...

Working closely with their WONDERFUL coach, we have been able to match the Pen Pals according to their interests.

For example, Isabelle (medical student in Montrael ) is connected to Kelda (see below :0).

Nadine (Montreal) and Tambe (Cameroon) have a few things in common besides soccer. For example,they are both African!! Nadine is half-Egyptian!!

Gaëlle (Montreal) and Janet (Cameroon) both love MUSIC!!! They will have no trouble enjoying the beautiful sounds of Makossa, of Cameroon, and Coupé Décalé, of Côte d'Ivoire.

The Pen Pals have been Introduced. The FSS players have written their first letters and the Cameroonian youth are forming their responses now!

Check Out These Skills!!!

In August 2010, CFDP hosted three days of youth camps in Kumba. Each day consisted of soccer drills, discussions on important life skills and health topics, free hot lunch, competitive soccer matches, and most importantly...FUN!!

We are planning for MORE SOCCER FESTIVALS this summer for YOUTH in KUMBA and in BUEA, the capital of the Southwest Region of Cameroon.

Check out some videos from last summer!!



AMAZING JUGGLING SKILLS


CRAZY BACK FLIPS...THIS GUY DOESN'T STOP!!!

Cameroonian Leader weighs in on uprising in Tunisia and Libya

The events in North Africa are a wakeup call for the entire continent. You have leaders who cling to power for long stretches of time while they do nothing good for the continent's children, you have a continent blessed with so much but having nothing at the table because everything is been looted by the West and now China follow suit, so you have hungry angry people whose only alternative will be to take to the streets. Our leaders should wake up and work for the people or make way for the young patriotic able citizens who can turn Africa in a success story. Africa should be a leading continent but not a following continent as is the case. You have a continent divided in Euro or Arab centric, Anglo or francophone, it's time for us to choose our true friends and develop our continent as one, stop begging Europe and China and perhaps look at models like South Africa, Brazil and India.

Chief Bisong Etahoben, Yaounde, Cameroon

Report on the Barombi Kang Youth Camp on Dec.28th

Provided by:
Aminkeng Brian
Kumba, Cameroon

The camp started at exactly 9:00am,immediately after the registration exercise which began at 08:15.We recorded a total number of sixty five(65)youths from this community, with five(5)of them being girls and sixty(60)boys, and their ages ranged from 12-23.Present at this camp were the following board members: Dickson, Nenne, Caroline, Wallace, Ashu and myself.


The youths were subdivided into three groups of twenty (20) each, with two board members per group. During the camp, the following topics were discussed; Adolescence, Healthy Relationships, Teenage pregnancy, HIV AIDS and lastly Communication with Parents.


So much emphasis was laid on the last three topics because the Youth Community President revealed that youths were increasingly becoming parents(boys and girls)as early as sixteen(16). Also some were so much involved in alcohol and drug consumption, leading them to physically abuse their parents on many occasions. Thus we had to spend much time on these topics, to try to enlighten them on the dangers and consequences of being involved in such acts. Their general participation during the discussions was encouraging. Though in the beginning they were a bit timid and withdrawn, they later on opened up thanks to the jovial atmosphere we created around the camp. We also pointed out to them the health, psychological and social consequences of fathering a child at the tender stage of adolescence.


When it came to the football drills, the youth were very enthusiastic about the various ones we presented to them. They were ready to try drills like the inside drag, dribbling between the cones, precise passing of the ball, both short and long passes and lastly, movement on and off the ball. During these exercises, they could easily perform it with their right legs, but when it came to them doing it with the left, the was a problem. Thus we had to ask them to do it repeatedly till we saw some improvement. But what most of them excelled in was the passing of the ball, both short and long passes.


Worth noting is that we had a water break of about 20minutes. Also the discussions were mostly done in the morning, reasons being that since we are in the heart of the sunny season in Africa, it was good to discuss these topics when their brains were still fresh and the morning was the appropriate period. So after water break and lunch in the afternoon, we mostly concentrated on other football drills. Later on at around 2pm, we organized a mini tournament of30 minutes each to see if they could put into practice some of the drills learned. And the result was encouraging.


To crown it all, the camp was a success, especially as we had the support and participation of the President of the youths in the community and some elders. Also not forgetting open hands the Chief of this rural community, Chief Akama welcomed us.

Samuel Eto'o named African Footballer of the Year!!!!!!

Samuel Eto’o, the face of soccer in Africa, was named the continent’s player of the year Monday, the fourth time the Cameroon forward has won the award.

Eto’o beat out Didier Drogba of the Ivory Coast and Asamoah Gyan of Ghana for the award voted on by the coaches and captains of all 53 African national teams.

This year was the biggest in African soccer history, and it began with Eto’o and Drogba competing to be the face of the game on the continent. Both strikers led their teams in the African Cup of Nations in Angola in January. Eto’o set an African Cup scoring record and Drogba’s panache garnered much of the attention, but neither Cameroon, eliminated by Nigeria, nor Ivory Coast, knocked out by Algeria, made it past the quarterfinal. Gyan, the third finalist for the 2010 award, led Ghana to the final, where the Black Stars finished second to Egypt.

Eto’o was the model for the 2010 World Cup poster, which was based on the player’s distinct profile. He has won the European Champions League with Barcelona and Inter Milan, and just the other day hoisted the Club World Cup trophy after a goal and an assist in the final in Abu Dhabi.

-NY Times