July 29, 2010

The Hope Community Center is taking a group of homeless men to compete in the 2010 Street Soccer USA tournament in Washington DC.

The idea of the tournament is to use sports as a means to try and end homelessness. Organizers say the competition engages the homeless to communicate, build confidence and learn how to deal with anger and frustration.

"I thought it was a great way for homeless communities and outreach programs to come together and to share ideas with each other, just to become a better citizen in the world," said Darryl Rojas, who played in 2009.

Hope Community Center staff hope the tournament ultimately helps homeless participants move forward in life, find jobs and become more independent.

"The success of the program is not whether we're going to win or lose, and it's not that we had a 5-2 record last year. [The success] was that the day after we came back, two men got jobs," said Joshua Bare, of the Hope Community Center.

The competition kicks off Friday, July 30 at Kastles Stadium in Washington, DC. Tournament registration is free.