We’ve been huge fan of the work our friends at Soccer in the Streets have been doing for a long time, so we were on board right away when Sanjay Patel and Erik Nelson invited us to see one of their flagship projects: the pitches at West End Station, in downtown Atlanta! And, seeing as it was a gorgeous spring afternoon, we thought there was no better time to hop in a car and drive down to the station for a quick tour. What we saw when we got there, though, blew us away!
Around three enormous pillars holding up the track that runs MARTA’s Red and Gold Lines, two enclosed soccer fields—and a colorful troop of kids running around on them—basked readily in the afternoon sun. We watched the station’s free youth programming: warm-ups, drills, scrimmages, all supervised by dedicated mentors (one of whom, apparently, had had a stint at the youth academy of Paris Saint-Germain). On the sidelines, mothers with babies watched their little midfielders dance across the artificial turf. In the shade of the rail line, a large bin brimmed with well-used balóns.
Not far from the fields was the community garden, something that had been put in during the pandemic in order to address food insecurity—at the request of the locals. West End was chock full of things not only devoted to soccer, but also to community development. Speaking with Sanjay and Erik, we got a clear picture of their plans for the future: they were adding an orchard, and cistern for the garden, and a decommissioned train car filled with learning resources and books—it seemed the sky was the limit for this previously abandoned sliver of land. The ongoing transformation was truly remarkable, and we knew right away—we had to be a part of it.
We spent the rest of the afternoon discussing possible collaborations, whether in funding or outreach, and settled on a plan to work together and to keep in touch. We are so glad to have made our little trip to West End, and look forward to making a difference right at home in Atlanta!
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