Community centre soccer at risk of being cut

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This article was published 10/12/2021 (1627 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Whyte Ridge Community Centre is at risk of losing its children’s soccer programming due to a lack of volunteers.

President Kimberley O’Hara told The Sou’wester the centre’s mini soccer program is down to two volunteers from its previous 12, not including coaches.

“Two volunteers just can’t sustain the amount of work,” she said. “The soccer program used to have many volunteers but, over time, we’ve lost quite a few because of COVID and the fact we didn’t have soccer for two years.”

Whyte Ridge Community Centre now has until February to secure about five or six new volunteers.

The time commitment is roughly two hours per week during the pre-season and then an hour during the season.

“We would love to have community members within Whyte Ridge and Linden Ridge, but we’re open to having people from anywhere,” O’Hara said.

The Whyte Ridge Community Centre has always had a strong grassroots soccer program, O’Hara added. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the centre enrolled over 300 children in mini soccer.

“I know it’s important to the community and one of the first programs people put their children into,” O’Hara said. “The kids are really hoping people will step up so they can continue playing.

“It’s a great opportunity for them to be outside, socialize with friends from the community and meet people.”

Whyte Ridge Community Centre incoming soccer director Kirill Pirgalin believes community centre soccer across the city is “experiencing a crisis.”

“Overall, there’s steady decline and people are looking into different programs, including private academies,” he said. “That, the pandemic and not enough new players and parents joining the program may explain why we’re only down to two volunteers.”

Finding volunteers for mini soccer is a bigger problem than youth, Pirgalin added. The program currently has no director or volunteers, including conveners and equipment managers. Volunteers also play a role in recruiting coaches.

While youth programming also requires volunteers, mini soccer requires more due to the large number of parents enrolling their kids each summer.

In total, the centre needs four volunteers for youth soccer and more than four for mini.

“If we don’t have more volunteers by February, we’ll have to start thinking of sending our players elsewhere because we don’t be able to operate the program at the same capacity as we did previous years,” Pirgalin said.

Pirgalin believes it’s important to the community the centre’s soccer programming continues.

“When people hear about soccer, they associate it with Whyte Ridge. It’s one of the things we’re proud of,” he said.

Community members interested in volunteering can contact the Whyte Ridge Community Centre at president@whyteridge.ca or soccer@whyteridge.ca