<turday, May 18, Carleton students, faculty, staff, and alumni will participate in the second annual Goals with Soul Soccer Fundraiser from 10AM to 3PM on Bell Field. The event, open to all Carleton community members, includes a 3v3 soccer tournament, a bake sale, and music, and all proceeds go directly to two Uganda-based non-profit organizations that focus on youth and women’s empowerment initiatives.
The event has not changed significantly since its first year, last spring. “It was such a success last year,” says Goals with Soul co-founder, Sarah Ferrari ‘13. “Why change something that doesn’t need to be changed?”
Ferrari and Megan Morrison ’13 created the Goals with Soul fundraiser last year to benefit Supporting Opportunities for Ugandans to Learn (S.O.U.L.) Uganda and Soccer Without Borders, both of which Ferrari had worked with previously. The tournament attracted 20 teams and the event raised over $1,000 in its first year.
Based on the positive feedback they have received, Ferrari and Morrison are optimistic about this year’s event. “It’s really great to hear people get excited, based on last year…still having that energy a year later,” says Ferrari.
The Goals with Soul 3v3 soccer tournament contains a competitive and a recreational bracket. Teams are co-ed and made up of three to six players, and each team will have four to five games throughout the day. The entry fee is $10 per player, and this year, there will also be t-shirts for sale for $5. Half of the proceeds will go directly to S.O.U.L Uganda and half to Soccer without Borders.
This year, Goals with Soul also organized an equipment drive for used soccer and school supplies to send to S.O.U.L Uganda and Soccer without Borders. Morrison reports that she was pleasantly surprised at “how thankful and grateful [the nonprofits] are.”
Because they will graduate in June, Ferrari and Morrison plan to pass on their responsibilities to two younger Carleton students, Courtney Jones ’15 and Nina Shapiro ’14, who have helped them organize events this year. Ferrari says, “It’s just really comforting knowing that there will be two able people to take over next year.”
“I participated last year but wasn’t involved in the planning process, “ says Jones. “It was a ton of fun, and I’m glad to be coming on to help plan it.”
Interested individuals and groups can enter a team by sending their team name, players’ names, and choice of competitive or recreational bracket to [email protected] by Friday, May 17, at 3PM.
Other ways to get involved include contributing baked goods, buying a t-shirt, or making a donation at the information tent during the day.
Last year, the tournament ended about two hours early because of heavy rain. Ferrari and Morrison worried that participants might be upset that they weren’t able to play all their games. However, Ferrari says, “Everyone was just excited to have participated in an event that was for a cause; they were not worried about the soccer because at the end of the day they did not come out to play soccer, they came out to play for Uganda.”