When Kuda Mabiza looks out over the field where he runs his free soccer and now volleyball program for the community in Surrey, BC, he doesn’t have to look too far to see how his community sport program helps keep kids out of trouble.

"Across the street from this field, there is a well-known trap house with drug dealers. Drugs and gangs are a big concern here. The police know it very well,” Mabiza says.

The Guilford area of Surrey where Mabiza runs this program called Espoir Soccer has many new Canadians, refugees, and low-income families for whom the program has had a big impact including 16-year-old Hassan, whose family immigrated to Canada from India years ago.

"It's really easy to fall into the wrong crowd,” Hassan says. "There's a bunch of kids just getting involved in things like drug dealing. It's not a good crowd to be around sometimes. But to be honest, I feel like this program kind of helped me rekindle some of the things that I lost in the past, getting involved with those kinds of friend groups.”

Mabiza started Espoir Soccer in 2016 and Hassan was one of the early participants. That is until Hassan had problems at school and dropped out of the program.

Now that he has gotten his life back on track, Hassan is working as a volunteer coach helping Mabiza introduce volleyball to the children including Hassan’s younger brother and sister.

"My goal is to inspire the kids and hopefully keep them away from the path that I took using sports.  I’m hopefully helping do everything I can to keep them engaged in sport and that interest alive,” Hassan says.

On this day in June, the smiles on the children’s faces show he’s doing just that.  There are mini soccer games taking place on one side of the field; volleyball nets are up on the other side and children are trying to hit balloons over the net, getting a first taste of the skills required for volleyball.

There is no one on the field with a bigger smile than the program’s founder, Kuda Mabiza, who grew up in Zimbabwe and says the only sports he did as a child were running and soccer because they were free. 

The money to run this program came courtesy of Volleyball Canada which received $425,000 from Sport Canada this year to help fund 30 different community sport organizations and their activities. It is part of Sport Canada’s Community Sport for All Initiative.

Mabiza jumped at the chance to be one of the 30 programs so he could purchase much needed volleyballs and nets and offer volleyball coaching so the children would have another option beyond soccer.

“Some parents asked us what other activities we had for kids who don’t like soccer. That’s when this opportunity came up for volleyball,” Mabiza says.  “The children are having a blast.”

Mabiza says parents in the area often can’t access organized sport programs because of the costs and time commitment.

Besides offering the free activities here at the park, they also provide these same soccer and volleyball programs at six different elementary schools in the area.

"It’s been a great way to introduce volleyball to these children who wouldn’t have done it before. Because we are outdoors, we get kids walking by on the street.  They come over and say, ‘can I try it’?"

Mabiza says the children quickly realize how much coordination the sport takes.  It is not just jumping and hitting the ball hard. There are techniques and skills they need to learn to get the ball over the net.

Mabiza adds he likes to organize the program in a different way.  “It’s less structured. The children have been very excited about that.  It’s really important when you are trying something new to have less structure. The kids can be themselves when they are doing it. It’s been really cool to see.”

Maria Enriquez-Quilantang has brought snacks and drinks for the kids and other parents tonight as she watches her son Caye enjoy his time trying out volleyball as well as soccer.  Caye who is eight has attention deficit disorder or ADHD which sometimes makes it difficult for him to focus and be part of organized sports.

“People with ADHD, if they're not interested, they don't pay attention. But when they're interested, their focus and concentration is there,” Enriquez says.  She adds Caye looks forward to coming to this program every week and rhymes off a few of the other highlights.

“It has been amazing to seeing Caye socialize with the other children, listen to the coaches, participate in soccer and volleyball and play with the balloons.  I am so happy because this program has really helped him grow.”

Another parent, Robin Keith has three children in the program who are bouncing up and down with unbridled energy at the end of night, like they’ve had too much chocolate.

“You can feel the energy from the kids.  It’s just like magic when you see all the kids playing together.” 

She adds, “I lost my husband about four years ago so it's just me. It's been pretty tight (financially) and I couldn’t afford to put all three into soccer. These kinds of things are great for kids, because it involves them, and they don't feel left out.”

Mabiza says the addition of volleyball to the program has been such a success he hopes to continue it into the fall.

Volunteer coach Hassan says he sometimes struggles to stay on track, but he’s determined to remain involved in this program. This hit home even more for Hassan after he recently saw one of his old friends killed in a stabbing attack on a bus in Surrey.

“I think it's really sad to see people dying at such young ages and all the stabbings and shootings going on. It kind of scares me but it also motivates me to work harder to be a better role model and to pull myself and other kids out of these situations the best that I can.”

Story by Teddy Katz; photos by Derek Stevens