CAC & AxisStars
Coaches Across Continents have partnered with Louis Saha and Kate Hamer’s AxisStars after meeting at the Soccerex Europe 2019 event. The AxisStars app facilitates authentic, win-win connections between Stars, their peers and trusted business partners, empowering all parties to manage and sustain their careers and brands in the most relevant way. Coaches Across Continents (CAC) is a global collaboration of communities, corporations, and foundations on 6 continents that use their unique Purposeful Play and Education Outside the Classroom programs to impact the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
With shared values in creating safe spaces and lasting social impact for individuals and communities we are excited to announce this partnership between AxisStars and Coaches Across Continents. CAC will offer Stars the guidance and opportunities to volunteer as an ‘On-Field Coach’ delivering Education Outside the Classroom in any of the 6 continents and 60 countries we currently run programs. CAC will work to place Stars in programs based on social topics they feel passionately about, time commitments and preferred locations. CAC plans to increase opportunities for AxisStars users to include: ambassador roles which can enhance brand reputation and long term partnerships with our CAC legacy team.
Peace in the DRC
August 4th 2014. CAC volunteer Jamie Wheaton blogs from Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
My team was welcomed with open arms as we crossed the border into the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The administrators of the Georges Malaika Foundation smoothed our transition across the border, which would have been difficult considering none of our team spoke any French, the official language of Congo. Over the next few weeks I would pick up some key phrases, most of which won’t help me if I have to speak French anywhere other than a soccer field. As we walked into our hotel, Sarah, the manager at the Kalebuka Football for Hope Center, gave us details for the week ahead of us. She, and the rest of the GMF team, were some of the most organized people I’ve worked with. They had every minute of our stay planned, even adjusting to unexpected surprises, like a trip to a neighboring farm or a detour so my peer could braid her hair (a decision we all regret). I was truly impressed by the coordination of the foundation all week.
This week had a different tone for me than any of the previous ones. For a start, there were over 65 people there, more than twice the amount I had worked with previously. While it was encouraging that Coaches Across Continents was reaching this many people, it made it harder to connect to the coaches on a personal level (the language barrier didn’t help either). While some characters stood out (a man who insisted on being called “Strong Man” is one) overall I didn’t feel as personally connected to some of the coaches who worked in the morning.
The afternoons were a different story: working with a small group of around 15 people we worked with the GMF employees to address specific problems in the society. Even though everything took twice as a long with a translator, we were still able to help them come up with possible solutions for child abuse, and child rights. The passion displayed in that room for the children in their community was very moving.
One thing that was unique about the program in Lubumbashi was that we tested out Peace Day games. International Peace day is scheduled for September 21st, and Coaches Across Continents will be supporting the cause by providing Peace Day games to communities in over 130 countries! Lubumbashi was our guinea pig for these games, and they were a big success. What to Do When Faced With a Problem and Understanding Violence were big crowd pleasers. Peace Day is a UN sponsored international holiday, and will be celebrated all around the world. Whats more, this year DRC will be the main focus country for Peace Day with many events promoting non-violence.
Overall, the GMF foundation impressed me with the care and commitment they’ve shown to promoting child’s rights. There dedication to the children in their area was incredible, and made my experience in Lubumbashi one of the most memorable of my whole trip.
