‘A language that many speak’: Thrive soccer camp helps local refugee youth cultivate their passions and connect

While some kids prefer reading, video games or hanging out with friends, it’s hard to beat the heartfelt connections made during the cheering of players and fans when a goal is scored in soccer.

That was clear Thursday at Thrive International’s fourth annual soccer camp for youth refugees at Rogers High School in Spokane. The nonprofit helps local refugees with housing, transportation, social connections and more, including the more than 200 kids participating in this year’s camp.

Denys Rudnytskyi is a 13-year-old Ukrainian refugee who arrived in America about six months to a year ago and has begun adapting to his new life with his family by virtue of Thrive.

While Denys attended Thrive’s soccer camp, he finds a preference for books and chess rather than the sport.

The people within the program support Denys and many others like him, offering opportunities for growth and integration into their new communities. Thrive provides a sense of comfort, safety and friendliness in a pivotal transitional period.

“If you’re going to have a good childhood, you’re gonna have to have a full life,” said Jim CastroLang, the operations administrator at Thrive.

The nonprofit also promotes well-rounded life experiences by offering opportunities to learn new skills such as soccer and social interaction for children in similar development stages.

Many of the kids at Thrive’s youth refugee soccer camp mentioned coming to America to escape war and other troubles.

Ali, a 16-year-old high school student at Ferris who did not provide his last name, mentioned the better quality of soccer at the camp compared to his home country of Afghanistan.

“Back in my country, we don’t really have goals like they do here, and grass, we didn’t have grass like we do (here); we had dirt.”

Ali enjoys playing soccer at the Thrive youth camp with many other refugees, where they all experience different cultures and share their love of soccer.

State Rep. Marcus Riccelli surprised the refugee youths on Thursday by participating in a game with them and discussed his own love of soccer.

Being a youth soccer coach himself, Riccelli explained why soccer was one of the best ways to connect with one another.

“Soccer is a language that many speak, and it’s a way to bring the community together. Sometimes language can be a barrier, sometimes cultural background can be a barrier,” he said. “So you find connection points, whether that’s sharing a meal or sharing a soccer pitch.”

Community and connection were common themes at the camp.

No matter what race or ethnicity the refugees were, or what language they spoke, a sense of belonging and community was present.

The kids interacted with each other extensively on and off the field, and it was clear that a very strong bond between many of the refugees had formed over the week.

More than 10 different languages are spoken at the camp, but the language barrier poses little challenge to the youths. Some even mentioned learning different words for soccer commands in languages other than their own.

“Building culture, and understanding different backgrounds, to come out here and have that sense of belonging … Many refugee kids arrive and try to fit into the community, and have difficulty connecting, and this is an opportunity for connection and friendship,” said Saw Gary, a program director for Thrive.