Erick chases the ball without a care in the world.
The 9-year-old is spending his afternoon on a freshly painted court with other children at the Willie Henderson Sports Complex in Southcrest. His mother, Lilia, watches from the sidelines.
For many families in the 92113 ZIP code, scenes like this have been rare.
“We can never come to the park because it’s dangerous, especially when it starts getting dark,” says Lilia, who declined to give her last name. “And that’s a problem because those of us who live in apartments don’t have a yard where our kids can play.”
A parent enjoys the afternoon with a child at Willie Henderson Park during San Diego FC’s community event. (Photo: Alejandro Maciel/Times of San Diego)A short distance away, music blends with the chatter of hundreds of people. Children bounce between inflatable play structures, foosball tables and a small petting zoo.
Families gather around makeshift tables, sharing food and spending the afternoon together.
Today, Willie Henderson Park is packed.
For years, it was a place many residents avoided. Families living in the aging apartment complexes surrounding the park learned to keep their distance.
Gang activity, drug dealing and other crimes gradually turned public spaces into places that no longer felt like they belonged to the community.
But the park is alive today thanks to Parks & Pitches, an initiative from San Diego FC in and its partners at Adriana’s Insurance that aims to bring community spaces back to life through sports and neighborhood engagement.
For years, communities such as Mountain View, Logan Heights and Lincoln Park lived under the shadow of crime, gang activity and a drug crisis.
The result was a daily life shaped by fear, with parks no longer serving one of their most basic purposes: bringing people together.
Today, the courts are full again.
A day of community and connection
San Diego FC’s Community Block Party has become a gathering place for neighbors who may cross paths at the grocery store, at work or on public transit but rarely have the opportunity to come together in a safe environment.
Children made the most of their day at Willie Henderson Park during San Diego FC’s community event. (Photo: Alejandro Maciel/Times of San Diego)Families spread out across the park much like they would at a picnic.
Some brought sandwiches. Others picked up food from nearby businesses.
Children move from one activity to the next while adults chat beneath shaded tents.
The park reflects the diversity that defines the Logan Heights and Mountain View neighborhoods in the 92113 ZIP code. African American, Latino, Asian and White families mingle throughout the event, many of them part of multicultural households that reflect the changing face of Southern California.
Organizers put together activities for every age group, including renovated courts, inflatables, games, face painting and hands-on exhibits for younger children.
Community organizations also set up booths throughout the park, connecting families with resources, information and local programs.
Bringing resources where they’re needed most
At one booth, two young volunteers guide children through simple science experiments.
They also hand out information about the Fleet Science Center and offer discounted admission tickets.
Nearby, La Maestra Community Health Centers provides health information and guidance on various services, among them prevention and access to treatment related to HIV.
Drug prevention also plays a major role throughout the event.
In neighborhoods like this one, the impact of heroin, methamphetamine and, more recently, fentanyl is impossible to ignore.
SAY San Diego, another participating organization, offers information about substance abuse prevention and distributes naloxone, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses.
Joan Echeverría knows these challenges firsthand.
For more than 25 years, Echeverría worked for the San Diego County Probation Department. Today, Echeverría works with Union of Pan Asian Communities and spends much of the time helping keep vulnerable young people away from gangs.
Joan Echeverroan Echeverría speaks with a group of children during the event. Echeverría specializes in gang and drug prevention and works with Union of Pan Asian Communities. (Photo: Alejandro Maciel/Times of San Diego)“Most of them are recruited between eighth and ninth grade,” Echeverría said, of the path that brings kids into gangs.
“During the summer, while parents are at work, many of these kids are being recruited and initiated through beatings that make them gang members, she said.
Echeverría spends the afternoon talking with teenagers and parents.
“Their attitude changes,” Echeverría said. “Their eating habits change. They start pulling away from family activities and even the way they speak changes. When you see those signs, get help. There’s still time.”
The event is one party of San Diego FC’s effort to make sure the club’s impact lasts beyond the 90 minutes of match time each week.
This year, the club has reached nearly 10,000 community members through programs focused on youth development, community service and growing the game.
You can see it in the children running across the courts.
In the parents sitting in the stands as the afternoon winds down.
And in the community organizations using a neighborhood celebration to connect residents with information, services and support.
Just a few yards away, Erick was still playing.
“I hope we get to keep enjoying all of this,” María Gutiérrez said as her child, Santi, gently pets a turtle.
Children reclaimed Willie Henderson Park during Saturday’s Park & Pitches event, a community initiative led by San Diego FC. (Photo: Alejandro Maciel/Times of San Diego)Hence then, the article about beyond the pitch san diego fc is fighting to reclaim community spaces was published today ( ) and is available on Times of San Diego ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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