Mesa Church San Diego runs Soccer Clinic to

Kids at Mesa Church practice their skills and connects with their neighborhood during their Soccer Clinic. (Photo taken from Mesa Church's Facebook page)

Mesa Church San Diego children's ministry practiced their skills and connected with their neighborhood during the Soccer Clinic last July 12 to 14 at Wegeforth Joint Use Park.

The church’s Facebook post on July 14 stated that the kids had fun at the said event. They added that they still welcomed others who joined on their second day.

Soccer Clinic

In the church’s soccer section, the church emphasized that they were excited to host the event to assist children in getting back up to speed with soccer skills. This clinic also allows them to meet more families in their neighborhood.

Besides, they included at least 90 minutes of lectures by expert coaches daily. Participants also listened to motivating stories or messages from one of the coaches. The church encourages parents to watch the event, but it is not mandatory.

The website also informed parents and guardians that they had assigned a security team and a security check system to protect the children. The church also prepared marked areas where parents could set up lawn chairs and hang out while watching the clinic.

Screening the Volunteers

The church guaranteed that their volunteers had undergone training to address some parents' concerns about the church’s volunteers in the said clinic. The church also conducted a background check through MinistrySafe.

The platform gives anti-abuse training to churches and screens volunteers. They added that they worked with the North American Mission Board to ask missionaries to join the clinic. The church said those missionaries serving the city this summer also had training and screening through the same platform.

Strict Policies to Protect Kids

The website stated that Mesa Church San Diego had strict rules to protect the kids involved. First, they do not allow volunteers to enter the comfort rooms while kids are using them. They noted that workers could only open the exterior door and wait for the child to finish.

Besides, volunteers cannot be alone with children. The website stated that the soccer clinic's volunteer-to-kid ratio is one volunteer per every two children. This policy is easy to execute because their activity is outdoor, as posted on their website.

The church also does not allow children to leave the field without having their wristbands removed at the checkout area. Their staff requires their claim number or a photo ID from a parent.

They added that they have a security group whose primary job is to enforce this policy. The church wanted to make sure each kid was checked out properly.

Beginning of the New Church

According to the church’s homepage, Charlie and Audrey Houck relocated to San Diego with a few friends. They moved in the fall of 2020 to the heart of the city. The website added that they have the desire to pioneer a church that would help individuals know their purpose.

Since then, their group joined with an existing church to launch Mesa Church. They said that it is a venue where all people are welcome to the table. Besides, they posted that they are a new church for Central San Diego.