Men’s Soccer Head Coach Jeff Alder and assistant coaches Jose Gomez and AJ Madero partnered with a group of prominent evangelical leaders to provide a day of fun, food, and activities for immigrant children at the Youth For Tomorrow campus in Bristow, Va., in July. The residential children’s program is one of over 100 in the country that cares for undocumented immigrant children while they are waiting to be connected with family members in the U.S. or placed in foster care.
The coaches were invited by former Flames soccer player Todd Lamphere, pastor of global outreach for Paula White Ministries, to provide a soccer clinic for about 100 children, ages 10-17. White, senior pastor of New Destiny Christian Center, helped out at the event, along with Dr. Jack Graham, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church; Jentezen Franklin, senior pastor of Free Chapel; Johnnie Moore, CEO of The KAIROS Company and an alumnus and former vice president at Liberty; and Bishop Harry Jackson, senior pastor of Hope Christian Church. Many of the evangelical leaders who helped host the event have served as advisers to President Donald Trump.
“Pastor Todd felt that soccer was the one sport that would really appeal to the kids based on their backgrounds, so we jumped at the opportunity to serve and represent Liberty,” Alder said. “Soccer has the ability to bring people together, even when we are from different backgrounds and cultures, and we felt it was important for us to be salt and light to these kids and be the aroma of Christ at every point of contact.”
The coaches held clinics in the morning and the afternoon and ended each session with a soccer game. They assisted the pastors in serving a lunch of Central American food. At the end of the day, Alder shared the Gospel with the group, with Madero translating in Spanish.
Each child received a Liberty University bag with a Liberty Frisbee, flashlight, water bottle, and pen. The children also received a backpack filled with school supplies as well as a duffle bag with toiletries and clothing, all donated by the participating churches.
“The experience for our staff was extraordinary,” Alder said, “and we are blessed by our time with this special group of kids who ended up giving us much more than we gave them.”
The event was part of the Project Shine refugee mission initiative. Several churches and ministries came together to sponsor the event in Virginia and another event at an immigrant foster facility in Miami, Fla.
