“Seeing my friends play the game, and knowing I had to stay home, made me try my hardest to complete my house chores,” Kim Chi says. “This includes cleaning the house, cooking meals, doing the laundry, washing the dishes, as well as finishing all my homework.
“Then I told my parents that if I got to play tag rugby, I would also be taught life skills by the coaches. And I told them that this program is not only for boys but for all children. Finally, I promised them I would not get sick playing rugby, so they didn’t have to worry!”
Kim Chi’s parents were prompted to do their own research. They spoke to other community members and found the program very interesting, particularly the life skills curriculum – which helps young people in a range of areas including leadership, problem solving, gender equity, conflict resolution and financial planning.
“I am very grateful that they let me play,” Kim Chi says. “As I eat more after training, I have even gained weight and my health has improved and my parents have stopped worrying.”
Since joining, she has also started to save money by applying the financial management skills learnt from the program. “This has made my parents happy,” she says. “They can see me learning from the coaches.”
