Christina Callaghan, president of Angels for Mexico, has started many different projects with a goal to improve the lives of people in Mexico.
In 2017, 2018, and 2019 she, with the help of volunteers, was able to build playgrounds in areas where there were none. A couple different years she put together a Christmas gift program for kids who got nothing. She has collected lots of uniforms and training gear for firefighters in Mexico who needed them to be safe, and you can read more about that here. Yesterday, on November 20th, she was able to give soccer gear, donated from Calgary Southwest United Soccer Club, to the kids from the Escuela de Futbol Tigre. She has a lot more to bring down, but it was all she could bring for now.
The Escuela de Futbol Tigre practices at the Loma de San Nicolas soccer field, and most of the kids live around that area as well. As their coach, Javier, told me, it is a very poor part of Puerto Vallarta. Many of the kids from the soccer team don’t even go to school. There are a lot of crooks in that area, and drug use is frequent. It is common that a lot of the kids’ parents, who don’t have much, resort to drug use, alcoholism, and sometimes violence. That influences the kids, and they might also start abusing drugs and alcohol. Javier said that many kids smoke marijuana, and some kids will sniff paint thinner or yellow contact cement fumes, since it is affordable and easy to get ahold of.
So, Javier tries to get as many kids possible to join the soccer team and get them away from the negativity and sometimes violence in their life. He says playing soccer gives the kids something else to focus on, at least temporarily. Though they currently have worn out soccer balls, rice bags instead of equipment bags, and unproper uniforms. This is why the soccer gear was so important to the Escuela de Futbol Tigre and everyone was so appreciative. Guadalupe, who is Javier’s wife, even made a shawl/scarf for Christina!
If you have anything that you can donate to these kids or you want to help bring down more of this gear, please contact Christina at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or +1 (403) 466 3691. If you would like to give monetary donations, click here, or you can send a check or money order to:
Angels for Mexico
107 Sierra Morena Circle SW
Calgary Alberta T3H 2X1
For more information on Angels for Mexico click here.