From July 26 – 31, 2010, Thomas Mehari attended the Urban Soccer Collaborative’s Annual Youth Leadership Camp at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. Below is Thomas’ round-up of his experience.
My Experience at the USC Leadership Camp is one that I will never forget. When I first arrived, I was a bit intimidated because many of the kids were ODP material and my skills were nowhere near theirs. After my arrival there, a welcome ceremony was held where we all got a chance to meet each other. After the ceremony, we did more ice-breakers in order to get to know each other better.
The remaining days were all dedicated to a variety of things. On one of the days, we went to the Freedom Center, which was a museum dedicated to the Underground Railroad. This museum helped open my eyes to the rich history of the Underground Railroad and it showed me the great sacrifices people made just to survive another day.
Another segment of the summit was coaching education. One of the people who taught the class was Dr. Ron Quinn and the other was Dr. John Thomas. Dr. Quinn did mostly all of the teaching in the class while Dr. Thomas did most of the hands on stuff on the field. They taught us how to coach U6 and U8 players. Some of the most important things that I learned were that all U6 players need to have a ball while the U8 players need to always be in groups while doing activities. The overall message the teachers wanted us to get is to change the whole “drill” system that coaches use into a more interactive system. At the end of the classes, we were all presented with coaching certificates.
The program also stressed the value of community service. They brought in several people to talk about the importance of giving back to one’s community. An organization called Ugive came and talked to us about how to do community service and keep track of hours using their website.
Finally, we played soccer whenever we had a chance. I played with some very skilled players that taught me how to become a better player. Even though I was a bit intimidated in the beginning, I showed them that I was the young Kaká after a couple of games!
This program really helped me become a better leader on and off the field. I even gained some soccer skill just by playing with others. All of this would not have been possible without the great people of City FC. If it was not for you all, I would not have been able to attend this life changing program. Again, thanks to all of City FC. From the bottom of my heart, I truly appreciate what you all have done for me.
Thomas Mehari