Can sports pave the way for peace? Sulu-based marines started Football for Peace because they wanted to teach the youth of Sulu a way out of the cycles of violence and poverty. Program founder Lt Col Stephen Cabanlet said the program gave impoverished children a crack at a decent future. He said, “The vision was not only for the children to be a good football player but more importantly, a good citizen.” The campaign expanded to other provinces like Palawan, Tawi-Tawi, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, and Zamboanga. Thousands of balls have been donated but with rough fields and heavy use, the balls never seem to last long. Responding to the need for stronger balls in the football clinics, One World Futbol and Chevrolet Philippines donated 2,400 indestructible footballs. The balls can survive the harshest environments, never go flat and don’t need to be pumped. The Marines are now looking for ways to support the college education of the children who join their football clinics.
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