Soccerthon a fun way to support kids with disabilities

Participants in last year’s tournament

TORONTO — Gilad Epstein, president of the Canadian Friends of Beit Issie Shapiro (CFOBIS) hopes that in addition to raising funds for the Israel-based organization through the fifth annual Soccerthon, the event will also serve as an opportunity to raise awareness about the group’s work on behalf of people with disabilities in Israel, and to solidify local partnerships.

Epstein said that when he assumed the role of president of the Toronto-based organization more than two years ago, his mandate was to add to the fundraising element by working with the local community to benefit Canadians as well.

“We felt that being the Canadian friends, it’s wonderful to promote Beit Issie in Israel, but we also want to have a direct impact on Canadians and our local community. That’s the theme of partnerships and that’s why I’m so passionate about Soccerthon, because it embodies those values,” Epstein said.

The Soccerthon, scheduled for April 26 at the Trio Sportsplex in Woodbridge, Ont., began five years ago as an adult-only tournament.

“Adults came and played a marathon of soccer for three hours at an indoor facility, and each player, each team raised funds, got sponsored by friends and family and that is how it started as a fundraiser.”

He said in the first year, the tournament attracted six teams and raised $1,800. This year, the tournament will host 16 teams, and Epstein is confident the funds raised will surpass last year’s total of $20,000 to support Beit Issie Shapiro in its mission.

Through Beit Issie Shapiro, there are treatment centres and a day school for children with disabilities, but there is much more than that,” Epstein said.

“They’ve transformed into a research centre, and rather than open branches across the country, they’ve decided to utilize one location and spread the knowledge through partnerships, through education, through training, through policy and through international impact as well.

“Part of the mission is to promote a society that allows people with disabilities to be included in society, to have opportunities to have lives as close to normal as possible.”

As for the upcoming event, Epstein said the soccer has almost become a secondary part of the tournament. 

“The kids program has become the crown jewel… We’ve partnered with Camp Aim, a camp for children with disabilities, and we will bring their campers and their caregivers to the event, and we will craft sport activity programs that will be adjusted to different skill sets and ability levels. It will be for all kids and will be inclusive,” he said.

“We will have six indoor fields running in parallel for four hours – three hours of play – and one field will be dedicated to kids. In previous years, these were the kids of the players… This year, we’ve collaborated with a few partners… We will run our first inclusive program.”

He said each team represents a country, such as Canada, Israel, Brazil or Argentina, and each team is responsible for raising a minimum of $1,000.

Other organizations, including Camp Breakaway, a Jewish Orthodox summer day camp for boys and girls; DANI, a non-profit that works to create employment, training and educational opportunities for adults with cognitive, emotional and/or physical challenges, and Maccabi Canada, have also partnered with CFOBIS on the Soccerthon.

“Recently, we were approached by the Jewish Agency [for Israel]… They want to create 67 events in commemoration of the 67th Independence Day of Israel and they were looking for events around the city, so we’re partnering with them and this will be one of the 67 events.”

DJ Schneeweiss, Israel’s consul general to Toronto and Western Canada, is also participating in the event.

“He will be there for the opening ceremony to welcome the crowd, and he will also be playing on Team Israel with his children,” Epstein said, adding that he’s expecting up to 500 people at the event.