Fred Bowen's "The Score" column,
Friday, April 15, 2005, Washington Post

A Winning Touch

The spring soccer season has started. Kids in parks all over the area are practicing their dribbling, passing and juggling skills. But what if, in addition to improving your soccer skills, you and your teammates could help kids with cancer?

That's what three teams in Montgomery County did last month. The MSC Shamrocks, the MSC Celtic and the Olney Soccer Shamrocks kept soccer balls in the air for a two-hour juggle-a-thon, raising $6,000 for cancer research.

The teams had a special reason for the event. MSC Shamrock player Katherine Michael, 7, was diagnosed with leukemia, a kind of cancer that affects the blood, in December.

The coaches and kids, including Katherine's 15-year-old sister, Stephanie, wanted to do something to help, so they contacted the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The national organization, along with youth soccer groups, has created a program called Soccer Kicks for Cancer.

"The kids really got into this," explained Katherine's coach, Michael Foecking. "They raided their piggy banks and were willing to go around their neighborhoods explaining the reason they were raising the money."

The folks at LLS suggest that players collect pledges from family, friends and neighbors for every "touch" (dribble, pass or juggle) of a soccer ball. The aim is for each player to have 200 "touches" every day during a 10-day period. That's 2,000 touches. At a penny a touch, that's $20 for a good cause and a lot of soccer practice.

The Montgomery County teams got all their "touches" in the two-hour juggle-a-thon, and Foecking says he hopes to make the fundraiser an annual event. Almost 50 soccer teams in the Washington area are registered with Soccer Kicks for Cancer, said Tom Merritt of LLS.

Sports such as soccer provide a great way for kids to learn how to work with other kids. To be a good teammate you have to learn how to pass the ball, encourage your teammates and do things to make the team better.

Programs such as Soccer Kicks for Cancer can teach kids even more. They can show kids that there is something more important than just winning the next game or scoring a goal. By raising money and helping kids with a scary disease such as leukemia, soccer coaches and kids can take their game to a whole new level.