I was fortunate enough to interview one of the founders of Orlando City Soccer Club, Kay Rawlins. Wife of founder and President of Orlando City, Phil Rawlins, Kay is the President of the Orlando City Foundation. Although it is only three years old, the Orlando City Foundation has made great strides in combating their platform of childhood obesity in downtown Orlando.

“We’ve changed into this diverse sports town,” says Kay Rawlins of the new Orlando City training facility, opening in Lake Nona in 2017. The Orlando City facility will be near the new United States Tennis Association (USTA) facility set to open at the end of 2016. In addition to the Orlando City facility being the training location for the MLS team, it also will be the training facility for the United Soccer League (USL) team, Orlando City B (OCB), as well as the home for the Orlando City youth academy.  Although the main offices and the foundation will move to the new stadium in the Parramore area, also set to open next year, Kay says, “The players are excited to build exactly what they want in the new [Lake Nona] facility.”

Orlando City Soccer Club began around a dining room table with one goal and vision in mind. From the beginning, community involvement was a pillar to the soccer team being created. Kay noticed the great need in Orlando’s underserved areas. She noticed the difference in childhood obesity rates in the community where the soccer matches were being played, mainly the Parramore area.

According to stateofobesity.org, the current (2015) obesity rates for high school students in Florida is 12.3%, ranking Florida high school students 27 out of the 43 states that participated. However, when broken down by race, the differences are more stark. In the U.S., 20.2% of black, 22.4% of Latino, and 14.3% of white children are obese. The Orlando City Foundation’s goal is to tackle the obesity problem in Parramore and Pine Hills.

“People think if you’re poor, how can you be obese?” Kay went on to explain that there is a “food desert” in the targeted community. There is no Publix with fruits and vegetables, however, there are plenty of fast-food locations with cheap and easy foods. Additionally, it is too expensive for small grocery vendors to provide fresh fruits and vegetables. The cost would be passed down to the consumer, and it would simply price a family out.

How do you tackle a national epidemic? “We began by implementing a program called Soccer for Success, where there are 60 minutes of vigorous play and 30 minutes of education.” Soccer is clearly a vigorous sport, where professional players can run up to seven miles in a single match. Kay explained that the program, which is overseen by the U.S. Soccer Foundation and is free to participants, also provides education in nutrition, attitude, teamwork and respect, among other needs specific to each group. “If Kaká (the Brazilian soccer player) says, ‘Drink more water or eat your vegetables,’ kids listen,” says Kay of how influential she knows the players are. She says she always wanted to use the players in an impactful way.

The Orlando City Foundation has created four purple mini-pitches – soccer fields roughly the size of a tennis court – throughout the downtown Orlando area. They partnered with established organizations that provide the needed infrastructure, restrooms and classrooms for the Soccer for Success program. In addition, they have a small, unmanned library in the Parramore area and look forward to opening several more.

In order to combat the fresh-food shortage, the Orlando City Foundation created their first community garden, one of several to come. On Earth Day this year, with the help of roughly 100 volunteers, a garden with 20 beds was established.

However, they didn’t stop there. Workshops were arranged with gardeners from Leu Gardens, and the Orlando City Foundation partnered with the City of Orlando’s Green Works Orlando to provide continued education on gardening and composting. Additionally, Kay looks forward to opening a farmers’ market at the new stadium.

The goal of the foundation is to make an impact on the obesity problem but also to create places to play, eat and learn, pockets in the community where you can work on your whole self. Ideally, Kay would like to have the mini-pitches adjacent to the community garden and have a small library nearby. “To make an impact, you have to focus in,” says Kay of her direct focus for her neighbors in the Parramore area.

The Orlando City Foundation has four main fundraising events.  They alternate between an event called Soccer in the City or a Foot Golf Tournament; this usually kicks off the season.  In the summer, they host Play Bingo, which is a ladies-only luncheon event where nearly everyone leaves with a prize. In September, they will have their Celebrity Golf Tournament, where you can get the chance to play golf with a soccer player or local celebrity, and their final fundraiser is the Awards Gala near the end of the soccer season. Also, people can create their own fundraiser where the money is donated to the Orlando City Foundation.

Kay says they always have a need for new or gently used cleats. Also, she looks forward to a book drive at a future soccer match to fill the small libraries. Her vision for the foundation’s goals may seem lofty, but this is the woman who helped to create a Major League Soccer team from her dining room table.

For more information on the Orlando City Foundation, visit OrlandoCitySoccer.com and click on the Community tab.