Children with special needs in the Oshkosh area and beyond are getting some exciting opportunities thanks to the YMCA. Any young athlete looking to try out soccer as their next sport was given the chance with the help of a program called Top-Soccer which makes sure athletes with disabilities still get to play the sports they love.
It took months of planning, dozens of volunteers and a handful of kids to kick off this program. But after all the hard work organizers, parents and especially those kids proved that it was well worth the work.
Today at the YMCA in Oshkosh organizers only expected about six to ten kids to show up and learn some soccer basics.
"There's not a whole lot out there for kids with disabilities," says Sara Muhlbauer a mother of a boy with some limitations of his own.
But these kids, or should I say athletes, helped crush that number.
“We had 23 kids sign up for this first time and we're hoping it grows," says Sohaila Akhavein the Sports Coordinator at the YMCA in Oshkosh.
The Top-Soccer program teams up kids with limitations with some one on one coaching. It’s a chance for kids that might not be in a sports program, to get out on the field.
"He has not been on any sports teams," adds Muhlbauer.
"A lot of times he runs past it (the field) and asks what are they doing? And so he get's to do it himself," adds Kyle Shrader a proud dad at the program.
But these hour long sessions go deeper than just putting a ball in the net.
"It's an opportunity for (my son) and all the children like him for inclusion," adds Shrader.
"My little guy takes away from it the opportunity to be like his big brother," adds Muhlbauer.
Because while these skills can be learned with time. Instant gratification can also be found here, for everyone.
“It's just great to see these kids having fun and enjoying themselves like anybody else. And they don't get that opportunity," adds Akhavein.
And while the word opportunity has been kicked around a lot in this report, maybe it's the word team that better describes what many of these kids experienced at the YMCA today, for one of the first times.
"He hot to put on soccer socks for the first time and his shin guards and he just thought that was the coolest thing," adds proud mom Muhlbauer.
Every Saturday at 10:30 to 11:30 at the Oshkosh YMCA your kids can get involved with this free program that runs through February. Organizers just ask that you sign up first so they have an idea how many kids they'll be coaching. You can reach the YMCA at 920-230-8439.
