GrassrootSoccer’s Ethan Zohn to Dribble a Soccer Ball 500 Miles in the Fight Against HIV/AIDS
See how you can participate at www.grassrootsoccerunited.org
May 8, 2008. New York, NY and Cape Town, South Africa. GrassrootSoccer (GRS), a non-profit using the power of soccer in the fight against HIV/AIDS, and Ethan Zohn, winner of Survivor Africa and a GRS co-founder, will accomplish a world’s first. This fall Ethan Zohn will dribble a soccer ball 500 miles from Boston, MA to Washington, DC, raising awareness about HIV/AIDS. The 2008 Dribble will launch Grassroot Soccer United, a youth-led soccer club designed to support those kids around the world in their fight against HIV/AIDS.
On August 20, 2008, at halftime of the New England Revolution match at Gillette Stadium, Ethan will begin his 100-day journey south. One step, one dribble and one day at a time, Zohn and GRSU will visit hundreds of youth soccer clubs and players, between Boston and Washington, coaching soccer clinics, informing about the challenges of growing up in southern Africa, and teaching about the importance of making healthy choices in life. Zohn will conclude the dribble on December 1, 2008, in Washington DC on World AIDS Day.
Grassroot Soccer United and Ethan’s 2008 Dribble are sponsored by PUMA, a long-time supporter of African Football. PUMA has created PUMA and GRS co-branded soccer balls and apparel with all proceeds benefiting GRS’s mission. PUMA and GRS first worked together in 2006 when they teamed up on “The African Game,” a special book project celebrating African Football.
To participate and support GRS Dribble 2008, visit our web site at www.grassrootsoccerunited.org. By raising awareness in their communities, kids have an opportunity to win a trip to Cape Town, South Africa (host of the 2010 World Cup), meet a soccer celebrity and winner of the reality TV show Survivor Africa, Ethan Zohn, and to win various other prizes such as PUMA soccer balls, shirts, hats and bags. Young soccer players will also have the chance to be matched with an African Teammate who will benefit from their advocacy, fundraising and support.
If you are interested in hosting a GRS sanctioned event along the route, log on to www.grassrootsoccerunited.org and see if GRS Dribble 2008 is coming to a town near you.
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Contact info: Lucas Richardson, lucasr@grasstoorsoccer.org
Grassroot Soccer Inc. (GRS) is an international, non-profit organization that uses the power of soccer to improve the health and well-being of children and community in the most disadvantaged countries of the world. GRS teaches an activity-based curriculum that is proven through multiple, third-party studies to positively change behavior in children and communities with respect to their health and well-being, particularly with respect to the social change needed to thwart the HIV/AIDS epidemic. GRS provides its partners with technical assistance in the form of curriculum, best practices, staff training and evaluation methods to ensure a successful deployment of the GRS program in their community.