The Stoke City Community Trust, the Premiere League and the Sacred Sports Foundation share a common goal—to encourage children with disabilities to aim for the stars.

The three organizations recently launched a ground-breaking initiative for children with disabilities in Saint Lucia.

The Ability Over Disability Program will see a delegation from Stoke City Community Trust work with over 160 youth with disabilities over a period of 10 days. The team will also train eight youth mentors to deliver engaging sports sessions with children of special needs schools. Four mentors will be from the United Kingdom, and four from Saint Lucia.

Resident British Commissioner, Steve McCready, praised the efforts of each organization, and noted that sports is one of the most viable avenues to prepare young people for the challenges of adulthood.

“My anecdotal experience is backed by a growing consensus of international institutions like the UN, by government policy, by academic study, and by private sector activity. [It is also backed] by the determined efforts of NGOs and organisations like the Sacred Sports Foundation and the Stoke City Football Club Community Trust,” McCready said. “I really like the title of the program: Ability Over Disability. In three short words, it makes a powerful positive statement about why the program is so necessary, meaningful and effective.”

The Sacred Sports Foundation is a Saint Lucia-based charity established to provide programs through sports for disadvantaged youth. The Stoke City Community Trust is a British registered charity. The Trust provides sporting opportunities for young people regardless of economic status or physical ability.

The initiative is supported by the Premiere League International Development Fund. The Premiere League, England’s top-level football league system is the most watched sports league in the world.

Chairman of the Sacred Sports Foundation, Delroy Alexander, said the program’s purpose is to facilitate personal growth and development within Saint Lucia’s special needs community.

“The program is really designed to build capacity in Saint Lucia,” he said. “The biggest issue we have in working with our special needs community isn’t desire or financial resources; its skills and human relationships. We need trained coaches, trained mentors, trained people and through the kind help of Stoke and the Premiere League International Development Fund, we have been able to put together a consistent, cohesive program. Over the next year or two we will be working with three local special schools.”

The group of eight youth mentors will lead a range of sessions throughout the week including blind football, Boccia, and adapted football games to engage local youth from the special schools.