AFJA

12 May, 2019

“Ten cuidado.” “Be careful.” "With these words my wife, son and I depart for the hour-long drive from our hotel in Suchitoto to AFJA’s home field in Los Amates." Read about our friend Peter Ormand's visit to Los Amates.

15 Jan, 2019

1/15/19 It was a four game matchday at the Los Amates soccer field.  Halfway through the first game (a girls’ match), I decided to sit down next to Steve on a log that served as a spectator bench: “You see those guys over there?” I begin to point before Steve raises an elbow to swipe me down. “Don’t point.  Those guys are .” I feel embarrassed to even bring this up as a major moment during my trip - it’s a weekly occurrence at the Los Amates Soccer Field.

27 Oct, 2018

The Power of Play: From Los Angeles to Los Amates By: Diana Ruano @ambicion.salvadorena Football, soccer, fútbol, no matter what you choose to call it, there is no denying that it is one of the most unifying sports in the world. For me, my passion for fútbol comes out in full force during the World Cup. It is a time to pull out the soccer jerseys, root for la patria, and support the teams we adopt when we see the excitement in our friends’ eyes as they root for their motherland. The fruits

30 Jul, 2018

07.30.2018 It’s a tuesday evening in Koreatown, Los Angeles and I am meeting up Alex and Steven from AFJA (Academia de Futbol Juvenil Amatense) for the first time. In many ways I knew what to expect, just like Alex and Steven, I grew up in Los Angeles the product of parent(s) who fled the civil war torn country of El Salvador in the early 80s. I was certain we would connect over our love of futbol, familia and pupusas. Beyond having experiences which resonated including attending the same

30 Jul, 2018

El Salvador is currently facing a scarce water crisis where 100% of the countries water is contaminated, including bottled water, with faeces , fluoride, and minerals from mining companies. There are many reasons as to how and why the country no longer carries healthy water flows. A lack of education in environmental cause and effects, excessive exploitation from companies, and the governments lack of promotion of public services and awareness. As there are many contributing factors to the

24 Sep, 2019

09.06.2019 "All of a sudden, my visit to the motherland had a new meaning"  During a short vacation in El Salvador, I was contacted by Steve from Academia de Futbol Juvenil Amatense (AFJA). “If you have time, I would love to have you visit Los Amates for a practice, ” he said after a brief greeting. My immediate response was “I would love to!”. I didn’t think about it twice. I felt honored to be able to visit Los Amates, one of AJFA’s local academies, and was looking forward to learn about the

01 Feb, 2019

Freddy Jesse Izaguirre Merlos Guest Blog for Afja.ES December 25, 2018 I often think about the juxtaposition of our experiences in El Salvador versus here in the United States. Given everything that is going on in the news, I am eternally grateful to Steven and the AFJA ES family for inviting me to guest write my thoughts in this blog. My heart is always with our people, and I am delighted to share with you my recent scribbles. Since I first saw it, I have been inspired by the powerful

21 Nov, 2018

I met Steven in college. I was one year into living in LA at the time and we connected immediately on our passion for business and creating something. We would throw ideas around consistently and even put a few to work, learning something along the way every time. He’s from South Los Angeles and I’m from Brooklyn, NY – we have very different styles and I learned a lot from working with him. In everything he did, he gave it his all, and always worked toward a higher purpose. I thought it had

23 Aug, 2018

I first visited the community of Los Amates, La Libertad, El Salvador when I was 6 months old. From then on, I would spend most of my childhood summers visiting my grandmother’s home in what is known today as the Northern Triangle of Central America. Back home my classmates would share their plans for summer retreats with the Scouts, family vacations, baseball camp, but me? I went to what my mom called “Life Camp.” She made the conscious decision to make sure I had the opportunity to experience

11 Jul, 2018

Academic Partnerships Having ally ships with local schools is one of our ongoing accomplishments in Los Amates. Not only do we honour the connections we are able to contribute to, but our intention is also to develop unique relationships with other educational institutions and their students throughout El Salvador. Education is part of our foundation as we are assuming the responsibility of engaging with youth on a daily basis, therefore it is important to emphasize that education comes in many

29 Jun, 2018

At a very young age I was introduced to the art of football and the intensity it carried in my culture. I remember it was the first time I had seen Ronaldinho at the World Cup and the foot work he put out on the field that forever captured my attention and love for the sport. Since then I have never stopped participating in engaging with the sport from playing a game to simply practicing keep-ups. However there was a dark side to the sport I learned the hard way, such as the sexism surrounding

14 Jun, 2018

Sustainability: Recycling Your Cleats             The country of El Salvador is rich in culture, natural resources, and home to many of the worlds imports. However, due to historical ruptures infiltrated by the United States, El Salvador has been striving to economically recuperate what has been destroyed by the north. Furthermore, according to the World Resource Institue, the United States is a top contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change that affect the Global South

03 Jun, 2018

Why Los Amates?: El Salvador is currently enduring a series of violent gang related crisis that has had a negative and penetrative impact on too many communities, families, women and children. Poverty and gang violence have consequentially lead to a staggering drop-out rate amongst children in primary and secondary schools. La Prensa Gráfica, El Salvador’s national newspaper, reported in 2017 that 42.6% of students in grade 6 in 2011 continued onto high school. El Salvador also continues to

18 Sep, 2015

Entry to the community field.  The Road To Los Amates

20 Aug, 2015

​