Young leaders look to the future while treasuring friendships that last
08/08/2019
Destiny plays a part in who we meet, and it’s a wonderful thing when they turn into good friends that we continue to want to meet and share our lives with.
And so it was that at the beginning of the year, fate played a role in a group of young people with common interests and similar goals meeting for the first time for the Jockey Club Youth Football Leadership Programme. After a half year of learning and growing together, they overcame numerous challenges and successfully completed the programme. They became good friends who pledged to stay in touch and help each other out as they continue on their way to further developing as successful leaders.
In mid-July, these 38 young leaders met in Guangzhou where they interacted with primary and secondary school students from both Guangzhou and Foshan. They organised a lively and interesting football event for the community and shared the joy of football with primary school students. Throughout the trip to Guangzhou, they demonstrated how their abilities had taken a great leap forward – from preparations before the event to contingency plans during the event, and in their communication with the participants. Crystal Leung, a social worker at Tung Wah Group of Hospitals who joined the trip, said, “When compared with the previous football carnival in Yuen Long, their performance here has been more mature, and this shows that they have learnt from the last event and have looked for ways to improve.”
Great chance to make new friends
Through this experience, the young leaders not only gained more experience in organising football events, but they also learnt how to respond in a crisis situation. For example, in the first primary school football event, many children could hardly play as the temperature was an extremely high 37oC. The young leaders reacted to the situation quickly, making an immediate decision to move the activities to a covered area – a move which won the approval and appreciation of OB, Hong Kong Head Coach of Manchester United Soccer School. In the following event for secondary school students, the young leaders showed their improved social skills in building good relationships with the students; and after the friendly game, they exchanged contacts for arranging a future gathering.
Tears of joy
The trip to Guangzhou was the final activity for the whole group of young leaders. While they enjoyed the trip immensely; inside they were all a bit sad, knowing it would soon come to an end. Pat Tang Pui-man, who had tears in her eyes when receiving her award for being the star leader of the trip, said: “I really appreciate every one of my teammates – I am so fortunate to have gotten to know them. I really appreciate the support that we’ve given each other over the past six months. Each experience has been incredibly cheerful and memorable.”
Dash Chan, one of the outstanding students, said: “Not everyone has the opportunity to get to know such good friends let alone participate in this kind of programme. Together we have faced many challenges and even had the opportunity to travel to the Mainland for an exchange.”
Dash Chan, San Wong, Parker Mak, Muhtasim Istiaq Shifte, Jacky Ching and Matthew Wu were selected as this year’s outstanding students and have been awarded the opportunity to attend an exchange programme with a community service component in Manchester, England at end of August. Matthew said: “My teammates always remind me bring them some souvenirs. After I return, I will most definitely share with them everything that I have learnt and experienced.”
These young leaders met during the prime of their lives and will forever share very special memories. While it was destiny that played a part in their initial meeting, by the end of the programme, they were taking matters into their own hands and planning future get-togethers to maintain their friendships as they work together to create brighter futures for themselves.
What did they experience?
Let’s review what the participants experienced and successfully achieved during the past half year!
Month |
Activity |
Objective |
January |
Orientation Camp |
Participants enhance their communication and problem-solving skills through team-building activities. They also take part in a Personality Dimensions® workshop where they learn more about themselves and their teammates through discussions about character and personality traits with social workers and mentors. |
January - February |
Football |
The Hong Kong Head Coach of Manchester United Soccer Schools conducts theory and practical workshops through which participants will learn leadership skills and build team spirit. |
Match |
1-on-1 Football Leader Interview |
Social workers conduct one-on-one interviews with each participant to re-examine their leadership qualities from the individual to the team level so that they can improve their performance. |
Match |
Leadership Training Camp |
Through challenging activities, participants raise their self-esteem and teamwork abilities and develop all-rounded leadership skills. |
Match - May |
Personal Challenge |
Participants try alternative sports to challenge themselves to persevere and to discover hidden potential. |
April - May |
Social Services |
Participants manage and lead district football activities for kids with sports as the foundation. As they give back to the community, they demonstrate leadership skills learnt during the Scheme. |
May |
Star Mentors Workshop |
Participants interact with star mentor Vivek Ashok Mahubani (one of the 2018 Ten Outstanding Young Persons) to experience different leadership qualities and broaden their horizons. |
May |
Football Carnival |
Participants apply knowledge and skills learnt during the Scheme to plan and lead a fun day for kids from all over Hong Kong. This further develops their leadership abilities. |
June |
Graduation Ceremony |
In addition to awarding certificates, the names of successful graduates selected for the United Kingdom exchange tour are also announced. |
July |
Guangzhou Tour |
Led by social workers, participants visit the Mainland for exchange activities that allow them to continue to learn and grow. The activities include organising football fun days and playing friendly matches. |