Spokane Velocity players showed up at Thrive International’s youth summer soccer camp at Franklin Park on Thursday, turning a free weeklong Youth Soccer program into a rare face-to-face moment for children from refugee and immigrant families. For Mel Akon, the visit landed after a doubt he had been carrying: he did not believe the players would come until they actually walked in.
The visit mattered because the camp drew close to 200 kids from more than a dozen nationalities, from kindergartners through 12th graders, and the players were not arriving as distant names on a roster. They were stepping into a setting built for access, confidence and encouragement, which is why Akon lit up when he spoke to Moses Mensah. “You’re my GOAT,” he told him, adding that one day he would look like him and be like him. Mensah answered simply, “I want to see that.”
The camp has become an annual fixture through Thrive International and 90+ Project, and this year marked the fifth year the organizations have run it. Russ Davis said the program teaches character, leadership and mental wellness through soccer, while also creating opportunities for kids who might not otherwise get them. Mark Finney said Thrive’s goal is not just survival for families arriving in a new country, but a chance to thrive.
That is why Thursday’s appearance by the Spokane Velocity players carried weight beyond the novelty of a professional team visit. Several campers had previously lived in Thrive’s shelters in Spokane and Tacoma, and the camp is focused on children from refugee and immigrant families. The professional players gave the camp a visible link to the next level of the game, but they also fit the camp’s larger purpose: showing children that the sport can be a place to learn, belong and keep moving forward.
There was still one small measure of skepticism in the background, and Akon voiced it himself before the players arrived. If they came back, he said, he would trust them “one billion percent.” They did show up. For a child at the center of a free summer camp, that may have been the clearest lesson of the day: promise matters when someone keeps it.
