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Hooooo boy, it’s been a long time since I engaged in some football-related do-goodery. Too long.

The Atin Afrika Foundation* is an orphanage that serves street kids in Uganda — a large, and largely ignored, problem after 23 years of armed conflict. The picture on this page was taken there, which prompted me to reach out to ask about their football program. (Yes, this is how I spend my time. Also, my friend Chelsea Peters co-founded the place so it’s not that weird.)

Atin was able to get a donation of 100 brand new soccer balls from the American Soccer Federation but their transport fell through and the balls are grounded in Ohio.

So, what do you say? Wanna get your do-good on?  We already have some experience with this kind of thing. Remember the Mdantsane Village Kit Drive? This time we don’t even need to gather the equipment.

What we DO need is transportation and/or a traveler(s) to get the balls from Cincinnati to Lira. I’m calling out to:

• My flight attendant friends. Can anyone donate cargo space?
• Friends who run businesses that might be able to sponsor this.
• Travelers who are going to Uganda.
• Footballers/leagues who might be able to act as a network to get these things where they’re going.

If you want to help please leave a message in the comments or contact me directly through this site. 

Anybody else who wants to kick in a donation towards this or other Atin activities should go straight to their page. They have a donation button and they’re not sketchy. As of May of this year, in fact, they are a registered CBO in Uganda.

We want to resettle the children with a soccer ball. These kids need to have a means to reintegrate into their communities and football is an amazing facilitator.
– Chelsea Peters

*Atin is not a religious organization. Here are their objectives:

• Raise a generation that will significantly contribute to its society
• Provide equal opportunities to the disadvantaged to access formal and informal education
• Offer the children counseling and guidance while teaching them life-long personal growth skills
• Ensure that orphans and other vulnerable children rightfully reach their potential and fulfill their aspirations
This afternoon this crossed my desk and I know that with the help of the international soccer/football community we can make this happen. We did it in 2009 for the squads in Mdantsane Village, South Africa, and this time we don’t even have to collect the equipment.

Find out more on their site, and definitely follow them on their Facebook page.