January 2007

Dear reader

          Thank you for visiting Fuhaha website, the cyber home of the first soccer academy in Kilifi district, Kenya, Africa. Formed on December 23, 2006 Fuhaha was launched with over 100 children from village of Tezo-Rocka. 
        The closest big town to Fuhaha is the famous coastal tourist resort of Malindi which 30 miles north and Mombasa which 40 miles South. This part of Kenya has culture greatly influenced by the Portuguese, Arabs and local Bantu culture with Swahili and local dialect the main mode of communication.

          We believe that the African talented player in the village should have a chance to get good soccer foundation skills as provided by good coaches. Apart from soccer, we also have girl education program initiatives. In Kilifi district out of 100 that start school only 5 matriculates at age 14 years.

          While we are aiming to be self sufficient soon, we have depended on donors and well wishes for survival and request for your help to allow our program to remain sustainable. No donation is small. We have applied for 501(c).
You can also choose to donate soccer kits such as soccer balls, uniforms, clits and jerseys. 

Last but not least, we would like to extend a big thank you to Technical and Management team of Charleston Battery for helping us collect donations through out the year and look forward to working with them again in 2009.

Sincerely

Mike Chitavi

Founder

January 2009
Dear reader,
The Fuhaha Youth Soccer Academy’s last two years have been incredible.  We’ve doubled in size to almost two hundred young members, and to celebrate these two solid years of existence, I wanted to highlight three things: our special breed of talented players; our friends, supporters, sponsors and dedicated fans; and our plans for 2009.

             First things first, the bodies, hearts and minds of our players have grown, and they are magnificent!  They are learning new techniques daily with astonishing enthusiasm.  The successful launch in December 2006 prompted four training programs, with test games being played in Mombasa--40 miles away.  

Our first few games in 2007 were tough, particularly for the Under 16 teams, but our players have shown enough tenacity, discipline, and skill to go unbeaten for the whole of 2008.  This swift  success has attracted young players to our academy from as far as 10 miles, with some walking barefoot the whole way just to come train and be part of our story.  It’s inspiring to watch the players transform as they develop their game.  We are also very proud of our young players who joined at 9 and 10 years old, and have now grown to be part of the Under 12 team. These players are exciting to watch, and as representatives of the Academy’s future, we aim to help them mature, both  as players, and as leaders. We have also seen renewed interest in girls’ programs, which should develop into another important part of our program.

All of this would not be possible without the generous and dedicated support of our sponsors, friends and families.  Another very important achievement in 2008 were the friendships we cultivated here in the US.  In 2006, we enjoyed relationships with the Winthrop Eagles and the Indiana Invaders, and have recently connected with Charleston Battery FC and the Mt. Pleasant Soccer Academy in South Carolina.  Endless thanks to David Kenga, who has been tireless in his efforts to make us a household name wherever he goes.  He has treated us to stories of young players donating their shoes and soccer balls so that children in Africa might get an opportunity to play.  One boy, named Rory McMahon, used his birthday party on Saturday, March 7th, 2009 to encourage people to donate to Fuhaha rather than bring him gifts.  A truly class act, and he’s only eleven years old!  Kenga stopped by the party, which was held at the Charleston stadium, and talked with them about Fuhaha and the possibility of Kenga taking Rory with him to Kenya next time for the full Fuhaha experience.  The kids in the enclosed team picture are Rory’s friends, family and coach, all of whom donated items—including 30-50 balls.

            With such invigorated interest and pursuit, our board of directors are aiming for bigger things in 2009, beginning with a program to raise enough funds to build a youth center.  With training programs in place, we must create a “home” for Fuhaha, so that it can become self sufficient.  This facility will increase the capacity to more than 400 children, and will include resources such as an additional playing field, a gymnasium, and after school program facilities. We look forward to the next two years, and those beyond as we all strive to meet our goals, and the needs of these promising young people.  

Sincerely

Mike Chitavi

Founder