As part of MLS WORKS Soccer For All Week 2021, Vancouver Whitecaps FC are honoured to announce the expansion of the club’s Kid Captain of the Match program in partnership with , Canada SCORES and Hope and Health.
The Kid Captain program is a staple on Whitecaps FC home match days, providing participants with the opportunity to be recognized and celebrated by the team and its supporters. BCCHF has been a longstanding partner of the program for several seasons, paving the way for the addition of participants from Canada SCORES and Hope and Health.
Canada SCORES is a nonprofit charitable society that empowers vulnerable youth to find their voice, achieve their goals and reach their full potential. The organization offers a unique combination of soccer, poetry and community projects to create a singular and comprehensive program that emphasizes physical activity, health and wellness, self-expression, academic engagement and community involvement.
"At Canada SCORES, we have had the privilege to work with many kids who have shown tremendous improvement in their self-confidence and have had the bravery to express themselves openly through the art of poetry ... In addition to that, they have also made a difference in our world by developing community projects to better their local communities. We are so excited to participate in the Kid Captain of the Match program because this is an amazing opportunity for us to honour them and celebrate their achievements."
-Kevin Yang, executive director of Canada SCORES
Hope and Health has been maximizing the power of sport to engage, educate and empower Indigenous children and youth in British Columbia for the past decade through its annual soccer-based community camps and a holistic community-based “play with purpose” program, called Hope and Health at Home “H3”.
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hope and Health quickly transformed H3 to H3 Online “H3O” to offer a virtual sport for development program to uplift, connect and motivate children and youth.
"With such an expanding group of children and youth around the province taking up the beautiful game of soccer, the Kid Captain program will be a wonderful way to recognize the youth champions that show up wholeheartedly, go above and beyond to help others on and off the pitch, and truly reflect the Hope and Health “Naut'sa mawt” team spirit—moving as one heart, one mind."
-Deana Gill, executive director of Hope and Health
BC Children’s Hospital is the only hospital in British Columbia devoted exclusively to the care of children, and is one of the few pediatric medical centres in North America with a world-class acute care centre, research institute, mental health facility and rehabilitation centre all on a single campus. The vision of BCCHF is that every child is healthy and able to fulfill their hopes and dreams.
Due to the pandemic, Whitecaps FC have pivoted to highlighting Kid Captain participants via digital content and look forward to inviting future Kid Captains to matches when fans are welcome back to home matches at BC Place.