Under its Collective Bargaining Agreement with MLS, the MLS Players Union donates certain fine monies collected from players to charities. Last September, the Union directed a portion of the 2014 fine money to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles in honor of Luca DeLaGarza, who passed away as a result of a congenital heart condition. Today, the Executive Board of the Union has selected five additional worthy charities to receive donations from the 2014 fine money: Delete Blood Cancer, Leucan Laurentides-Lanaudière, the Special Olympics Unified Sports Program, the Teammates for Kids Foundation and the U.S. Soccer Foundation.
Delete Blood Cancer, founded in 1990, works to provide blood cancer patients with second chances at life by registering as many people as possible as bone marrow donors. The Union’s donation to Delete Blood Cancer is made in recognition of FC Dallas goalkeeper Chris Seitz’s successful bone marrow donation in 2012, which saved the life of a Pennsylvania man.
For more than 35 years, Leucan Laurentides-Lanaudière has promoted the recovery and well-being of cancer stricken children and supported their families by providing distinctive and tailored services and assistance through every stage of cancer and its side-effects. The Union’s donation to Leucan Laurentides-Lanaudière is made in honor of New York Red Bulls midfielder Karl Ouimette’s sister Julie, who passed away after a long battle with leukemia in September, 2014.
The Special Olympics Unified Sports Program is dedicated to promoting social inclusion through shared sports training and competition experiences. Unified Sports joins people with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team, inspired by the principle that training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding.
The Teammates for Kids Foundation was founded in 1999 with the goal of giving all kids, around the world, an even start. Teammates for Kids helps children by funding Child Life Zones and supporting Child Life programs in pediatric hospitals, through sports and recreation for inner city children and by providing educational opportunities for the underprivileged.
The U.S. Soccer Foundation, founded in 1994, serves as the major charitable arm of soccer in the United States. It is a leader in sports-based youth development and uses soccer as a vehicle for social change, especially in underserved communities. The Union’s contribution will be used to continue an ongoing partnership with the Foundation to support its Mini-Pitch Program.
On behalf of all players in MLS, the MLS Players Union is proud to support five such worthy charities.
About The Major League Soccer Players Union
The Major League Soccer Players Union, headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, is the exclusive bargaining representative for all Major League Soccer players. For more information about the Players Union, log on to its website at www.mlsplayers.org. For more information about this press release, contact Bob Foose at (301) 657-3535 or bfoose@mlsplayers.org.
About the U.S. Soccer Foundation
The U.S. Soccer Foundation is a recognized leader in sports-based youth development programs for children in underserved, urban communities. Since its founding in 1994, the organization has provided more than $100 million in funding to create and sustain innovative programs across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Proven to deliver positive health and social outcomes, the Foundation’s affordable initiatives offer safe environments in which both boys and girls thrive. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Soccer Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization. Visit www.ussoccerfoundation.org to learn more.
