Ohio Galaxies FC U16 Elite girl’s soccer coach, Courtney Sirmans, likes to make sure her players learn as much off the soccer field as they do on it. Coach Sirmans took her U16 Girls Ohio Galaxies Elite team to Dayton Children’s Hospital to visit the kids and distribute gifts. Coach Sirmans recounts the story ”As a coach I've always wanted my teams to do something other then soccer, some way to give back. I don't believe in just being a good team and being good at soccer, that’s not what is most important to me. What's most important is that these young ladies grow up to be good people. We planned a trip to the Dayton Children’s Hospital. Each family of the players collected gifts for the children they were going to visit. We filled up two huge carts full of toys, gift cards to restaurants, gas cards and books. The girls were really excited about doing this and really went over and beyond what I expected them to do. We were told by the Nurses at the hospital that half of what we gave would stay at the hospital for the kids in the cancer treatment center and the other half were going to kids who have been sexually and physically abused. The Nurse told us that those kids don't have anything, and never get Christmas presents. I could tell on the look on my girls faces that they were in shock and then realized how fortunate they were to have loving families and a home. I plan on continuing to show this team how important it is to be a good person; you can be the best soccer player in the world but if you don't have a big heart off of the field then what is the purpose to life?”
After their experience at Dayton’s Children’s Hospital, the team participated in the Disney Showcase in Orlando Florida. This showcase is one of the best showcases in the country and many college coaches are there to recruit young players that would like to continue their soccer career at the collegiate level. Coach Sirman’s players won their first 3 games, scoring a total of 8 goals and only being scored on twice. They beat teams that were ranked as high as 30th in the nation. The team won their group and moved on to compete in the finals of the showcase. Coach Sirmans summarizes “Unfortunately we lost in the Championship but I was extremely proud of how well we improved from last years results at Disney. This team continues to amaze me with their dedication and passion for soccer. One of the reasons this team has been successful in the past is because of their team chemistry. All of the girls truly do like hanging out together and have fun playing soccer. It makes it easy for me to do my job when I have such competitive, fun individuals.”
In the spring the girl’s team plan on helping out with the TOPS soccer program, teaching kids with mental and physical disabilities how fun soccer can be. The girls are reported to be very excited about this new challenge.