“Sports not only builds better athletes, but also better people,” – that’s what our Vision Rescue Sports Club leaders believe, and understanding this encourages our young sportspersons to play with this larger purpose in mind.
Vision Rescue has always focused on the overall development of the child, their family and community at large. Sports being an integral part of education, we have tried to provide the talented children in our care with the chance to go professional, by providing them with targeted sports training in football or cricket through our Vision Rescue Sports Club. On the basis of their performance, these children are currently shortlisted by our Vision Rescue coaches to participate in the league matches conducted by the Mumbai District Football Association (MDFA).
To provide the junior boys and girls on our football teams a holistic education in sports, we organised a special Life Skills and Personality Development program led by our counsellor Elizabeth Chirayil and her team of volunteer counsellors provided by The Movement India. These volunteer counsellors are students of psychology at St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, and have been volunteering their skills and time generously for the benefit of Vision Rescue’s beneficiaries.
There were 24 girls and boys between the ages of 12 – 15 years of age who attended the session. It was four hours of fun activities, games, group discussions and speeches, all with the aim to connect sports to personality development.
These children come from slum communities in Mankhurd and Parel, where poverty is rampant and getting a good education, without dropping out of school midway, is a challenge. For children from such backgrounds, consistent engagement in sport through our Vision Rescue Sport Club is a way to incentivise education, and ensure that children are not just engaged, but sustained in education.
Many children who came to the session first believed that competition was the only purpose of playing a sport. However they went back with the understanding that sports can also help them interact positively with their peers & competitors, and can build team spirit, regardless of whether they win or lose.
The objective of the session was to improve the personal growth of our little sportspersons with the help of basic psychological principles. Through the session, children understood that playing sport not only gives us a sound body, but also keeps a sound mind. The students learnt how sport helps us :-
- build our understanding and awareness of self
- enhances our self esteem
- have a positive body image
- practice self care and hygiene
- form healthy habits and discipline
- in goal setting
These concepts were new to the children and its connection to sports was something they comprehended for the first time. They observed that sports can make them disciplined, responsible, accountable and self-confident, besides just keeping them fit and boosting their morale after a well-played game.
We hope and plan to have many more such sessions with our budding sportspersons, so that when they get on the field in the days to come, they play with the larger purpose of holistic development in mind.
We thank you dear donors for your timely and consistent support that makes such interventions possible. It’s because of your belief in these children, and the potential within them, that we can provide holistic development to the children in our care. Thank YOU for always Reaching out with Love !
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Vision Rescue exists to rescue children from all forms of exploitation by engaging and sustaining them in education. We are a registered NGO for child education under the Bombay Public Trust Act 1950.
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