“Connect – Compete – Grow – Give Back” is a key slogan at Halifax County United Soccer Club (HCU).
These are words that are often heard across many levels of the well-established soccer club that services Tantallon, Timberlea, Hammonds Plains, Prospect Road, and members from parts of the South Shore region.
“We see sport as a vehicle to teaching our players many important life lessons around how to be a good teammate, work hard to achieve goals, and of course, show gratitude to your parents, to your coaches, and to the community that we are all so lucky to live in,” said Jamie McGinnis, Executive Director at HCU.
In the past two years, HCU Members have raised over $7000 for food banks, as well as donating 1500 lbs of food, in our area as part of their “Give Back” initiative.
“From the club’s perspective, we wanted to focus on one issue happening in our community and see what we could do to help. With rising food insecurity, and with a membership base of over 2000 members, we felt like we could make an impact, so we organized a handful of camps to help this important cause,” said McGinnis.
This season, HCU challenged each of their 91 teams to take on one “Give Back” initiative for their community. We had a great response! There with several good stories, including the 13AA Connected team’s initiative of running a practice with NS Special Olympics to share in their love of the game.
HCU is looking to expand on this initiative in 2027, as they plan to ramp up their support for food banks in our area by establishing an events committee.
Halifax County United Soccer Club has been in operation since 1998 and services soccer players, at all levels, from ages two to senior. For more information on HCU, please visit their website: www.HCUsoccer.ca.