City Council endorses free youth soccer camp in south Stockton
Stockton FC and Stockton Youth Soccer Association teamed up to host a free youth soccer camp on July 21 at SAY Soccer Complex. The two-hour clinic for ages 6-16 feeds the need of activity through a primary sport for south Stockton youth.
Club from Concrete President Chris Hernandez and SYSA League President Noe Perez have both been notable figures in the community when it comes to providing a safe space for Stockton’s youth. Their work caught the attention of the city, which is why the city endorsed the event and provided a $5,000 discretionary donation.
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“I wanted to provide them an outlet to engage, to socialize, to become active, and I thought about the work of the two different soccer leagues,” City Council member Kimberly Warmsley said.
The day camp is just a start for what the two organizations hope will become an annual youth camp. In the future, they also want to expand the timeframe from a day to a weeklong camp that is still cost-effective for low-income families in Stockton.
“It’s really positive knowing that we’re making good heads and we are bringing more light to the team, to the organization, and to the community when it comes to soccer,” Hernandez said.
Warmsley hopes that camps like this will help break statistics that she found within south Stockton such as high rates of asthma, diabetes and blood pressure. As a clinical therapist and social worker by trade, she sees the lack of outlets to be active as a reason behind the stats. Events such as the youth camp can be a “pathway to wellness,” according to Warmsley.
“I thought what a great way to give back to the community by giving some, you know, some discretionary monies so that some free clinics can take place in south Stockton to our most vulnerable communities,” Warmsley said.
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The clinic not only gave kids time to get active but it provided an opportunity to be mentored by players from Stockton FC. Fifteen SFC players attended the camp in hopes of showing the youth where their talents could take them.
Perez sees the mentorship as a perfect fit for SAY Soccer league, as he originally started the youth soccer league in 2005 as a way to give his stepson and other kids in the area something positive to do. The organization provided that for Hernandez when he played in the league at the age of 14. It was a part of his foundation that he built on and shares with his players now.
“The youth at this camp can see those players as role models and maybe one day they can also become leaders in our community,” Perez said. “So when those guys become older, they want to return or pay back to our communities the same way the Stockton FC players have.”
Record reporter Shannon Belt covers sports. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @ShannonBelt3. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.