HOUSTON - The U.S. Soccer Foundation (The Foundation) recently awarded a $175,000 grant to the Houston Parks and Recreation Department’s Soccer for Success program. Funds will be used to provide field equipment and player kits to 1,500 participants and provide for instruction and implementation of the program. The program is available to youth ages 6 – 14 at 24 school and park sites and one Boys and Girls Club location.

“Houston has an avid base of soccer players and fans, and Soccer for Success is a very popular youth recreation program here,” said Steve Wright, Director, Houston Parks and Recreation Department. “We thank the U.S. Soccer Foundation for its continued support and dedication to improving the lives of Houston’s youth.”

Soccer for Success is a free, sports-based youth development program that uses soccer as a tool to improve the health and behavioral outcomes for children. The program provides after school activities, including soccer and nutrition education, in a safe after-school environment.

H.P.A.R.D.’s Soccer for Success program is a timely adjunct to Mayor Sylvester Turner’s Complete Communities Initiative, a new program designed to improve the quality of life in five targeted areas: Acres Homes, Gulfton, Second Ward, Near Northside, and Third Ward. The Soccer for Success program at Benavidez Elementary School, Jefferson Elementary School, Burnett-Bayland Park and Moody Park will benefit children living in Complete Communities neighborhoods.

The U.S. Soccer Foundation is the major charitable arm of soccer in the United States. Soccer for Success is a partnership program between H.P.A.R.D., the Foundation, and Houston, Aldine, and Spring Branch Independent School Districts’ schools. Additional grants to support the program have been provided by the U.S. Family Health Plan, South Texas Youth Soccer Association, and the George and Mary Josephine Hamman Foundation.

About the Houston Parks and Recreation Department

The Houston Parks and Recreation Department (H.P.A.R.D.) stewards and manages over 37,851 acres of parkland and greenspace for the City of Houston and develops and implements recreational programming for citizens of all abilities. For more information on the Houston Parks and Recreation Department, call (832) 395-7022 or visit www.houstont.gov/parks.