GERMANTOWN, Wis. — Volunteering and learning to give back are important values that help shape the lives of young athletes.
FC Wisconsin strives to help our players learn valuable skills on and off the field. The club has made giving back a top priority. Each team starts around his age of 12 and he hosts one donation drive a year. A valuable life lesson for these players.
Coach Neil Tolson leads FC's community giving program. “We want to develop good football players, but we also want to develop good young people,” he said.
Each year, the team chooses a different charity cause, from donating food and clothing to cleaning up local highways. Coach Tolson said anything the club can do to give back is important. An email will be sent to all club families for each drive. Coach Tolson said there is never a shortage of donations.
Last fall, sixth-grader Mason Hathaway was the driving force behind the team. They brought in more than 800 items, including 45 bags filled with essentials that were donated to Street Angels. This assistance program focuses on people living disconnected from services and unsheltered in Milwaukee County.
Buses loaded with supplies run three nights a week. Since the pandemic, executive co-director Eva Welch said the need has increased. “In less than a year, the number of people connecting to our service has increased by 54%,” says Welch.
Street Angels provides hot meals, boxed lunches, clothing, blankets and other necessities. But Welch would say it's more than what they offer. “They’re like tools of connection,” she said. “In the long run, it's important that people realize there's a whole community out there that cares about them and that's making a difference.”
It's also affecting young players. Mason said it felt good to donate. “It teaches me to be like a good person and care about others, not just myself.”