David Shier, of Niles, is a volunteer for the faith-based youth soccer program, Upward Soccer. It takes approximately 60 volunteers to run the Summit Church-affiliated program throughout the season.

 

Q: What do you do for Upward Soccer?

I am the lead director. My biggest thing is I coordinate the team that heads everything up — the whole volunteer base. So everything from recruiting referees on the field to the coaches to the volunteer staff on what we call the leadership team that carries out the mission of Upward Soccer.

I am a member at Summit Church (1700 W. River Rd., Niles). We are a separate division from Summit, but it is associated with our church.

 

Q: What is Upward Soccer?

It is a faith-based soccer program that focuses on delivering the message of the love of Christ while focusing on being competitive and doing sports the right way. It’s about having the right attitude and learning from sports the life lessons that are good for the community. That is ultimately the goal — we have good competition, but we focus on the life lessons on how to be a good sport.

This is our seventh year. It is for kids five years old up to sixth grade. It is an eight-week game and 10-week long practice season. They start in August and end in October.

 

Q: How do people get involved?

We have a Facebook page (Upward Soccer Niles) and a website NilesUpwardSoccer.org. And because we are associated with the church, I steer everybody to the church, so contact the church at (269) 683-9245. There are lots of ways to reach us. We can always use volunteers.

 

Q: Why do you choose to volunteer for Upward Soccer?

My passion is soccer. I love soccer and have played it my whole life. But the big thing for me is there are a lot of people who need to hear the good message: the love of Christ. There are people that don’t know or have never heard. This is an easy way to more or less show the kids that the one thing Jesus despised or disliked was hypocrites. Our world is full of them, so we just need to love people. Each week there is a message. It is quick and it is put on the heart of the kids — here it is. That is part of my passion. It is a great vehicle to show there is a love out there that is perfect.

 

Q: Why is volunteering important?

In the age we live there are too many people with their hands out and not doing the work. I think when you volunteer you see how many people are volunteering and how many people are not. There are a few people who are volunteering and they are working hard. Our volunteers really do so much. They work so hard. We are in meetings all year to prepare for the season and when the season starts it is full force. The more people, the more hands makes lighter work. The big thing people should understand is when you give back to your community, your community gives back to you.