YouthPower365/Photo courtesy
Ricky Luevanos has found true love on the pitch.
“It’s funny – I think I’m married to my job,” the youth development director of YouthPower365 recalled to a COPA soccer team a few years ago. Then, as one of the greatest volunteer coaches of all time, Luevanos lost the game — but won the day. The man who today helps head up a seven-week summer soccer program for kids ages 3-17 got down on one knee and asked his wife of seven years to finish the rest of his live with him.
Although his love and work are intertwined, his story is only one piece of the pie. Now in its 15th year as a project of the Vail Valley Foundation, COPA soccer, which runs June 11-July 30, is less about kicking the ball. and more community building. It’s about participation.
“I can say my favorite memory from COPA is having fun with what I consider my second family,” said Diego Perez, 2022 Battle Mountain soccer graduate.
“I have many favorite memories of COPA, but my favorite is when I was 5 years old and I was taking the ball to score. And all the fans were crying and I was so happy because I thought they were going to be happy but the moment I scored, I knew I had scored on my own goal. — Cassandra Ledezma
Everyone has a suit
The idea for COPA, named after the famous South American tournament, was the brainchild of two young local parents, Porfirio Reyes and Ramon Lopez.
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“They thought ‘Hey, let’s get our kids off the street and do this soccer program on Sundays. And YouthPower, we came in and helped them get uniforms, soccer balls, volunteer coach,” Luevanos said. The mission – “to keep children throughout Eagle County safe during the summer months while providing an environment that fosters self-discipline, builds self-confidence and soccer skills, and encourages relationships to their friends, family, and community”—is at the heart of what each of the 50 volunteer coaches do.
YouthPower365/Photo courtesy
“It’s really cool how the community is built around this sport,” Luevanos said. “We keep the kids in a safe program where they can play.”
For $35, kids ages 3-17 are placed on one of 50 teams — with names like “The Hot Cheetos” — cut into five categories per year. There are two practices per week and games at Freedom Park on Sundays to complete the championship game and parent and community party. The most important thing that kids have is a jersey.
“When kids get a jersey, they feel like they own it. They feel like professional football players,” Luevanos said. Sometimes, they really are, as in the case of COPA alumnus and Colorado Rapids second baseman, Cain Castellon. For others, the jersey symbolizes something deeper. Perez said the style helped him overcome his social anxiety and fueled his personal development.
“Not only was I able to make new friends but I also made a better place for myself,” said the former defender. “COPA has not only helped me at work but also in my personal life, ensuring my continued well-being and health.”
Driving that sport and personal training are COPA coaches. When asked how the program has grown and how he would like to see it continue to grow in the future, Luevanos pointed to academic development.
YouthPower365/Photo courtesy
“That’s one of the things we’re really looking forward to,” he said, adding that this year two of his coaches joined 10,000 others from around the world to hear from the players and staff at the United Soccer Convention in Philadelphia.
“It’s really exciting to come back to them and share that experience with our other coaches,” he said. Often, those roles are filled by former players.
Eternal Legacy
YouthPower365/Photo courtesy
YouthPower365 soccer program coordinator Yesenia Duran joined COPA in middle school because of her father’s interest in the sport, but found she enjoyed the participation and the coaches like him.
“The teachers are Hispanic, and when we were growing up, there weren’t many Hispanic or Latino principals,” he said. “I feel like the more I grow, the more I see.”
“It’s like the child sees something that’s happening to them,” Luevanos said. “I can relate to you – we speak the same language: soccer.”
Currently, Duran is a self-taught teacher. After completing his football career as a freshman, he became involved in the sport as a volunteer coach at the high school. He coached his younger sister, Monica — now a senior at Western Slope league-leading Battle Mountain — and several up-and-coming Huskies from the 6-8 age group at the middle school in the COPA program.
“It’s great to have my sister as a coach,” the younger Duran said. “He pushed me to my highest level. He not only taught me the physical game of soccer, but also the mental game. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be the player I am today. time.
YouthPower365/Photo courtesy
Maria Herrera still remembers a semifinal where Duran allowed her to play with younger girls. Down 2-0, Herrera scored twice to help his team advance to the final.
“Seeing all the young girls as young players and how proud they were of me made me feel more confident about my skills and how I played the game,” Herrera said. “COPA shaped me as a person because it’s a place where I can go and have fun with the right people and good teams. It shaped me as an athlete because when COPA came, I got a lot of training and learned a lot of new things while having fun.
Cassandra Ledezma, now a senior in goal for Battle Mountain, puts the ball in the net during her junior year at COPA.
“I have many favorite memories of COPA, but my favorite was when I was 5 years old and I was taking the ball to score,” he recalled. “And all the fans were crying and I was very happy because I thought they were going to be happy but when I scored, I knew I had scored my own goal.”
After participating in COPA for 12 years and counting, Ledezma can now smile, knowing the power of his experiences in changing his personality.
“I learned how to love and care for everyone, how to be supportive, and how to really be responsible,” she said. “It shaped me as an athlete because I learned that it’s okay to make mistakes and that’s how you learn. (I learned how) to make decisions and not give up.
While many COPA alumni have starred nationally or gone on to play at the post-prep level, it will be decided by the end-of-season parent party, complete with bouncy castles and free sponsor swag. , the main goal of COPA is not a stepping stone. to the contract pro.
“The most important thing about COPA in the community is the way it brings people together,” Duran said. “As for myself, I have made new connections and friends through this program. I used to be a shy girl, and with the help of COPA, it helped me break my shell and come out of my comfort zone.
That’s why players, like her sister, often succeed in becoming coaches.
“It’s good to see that way,” Luevanos said. “When they graduate from high school, in the summer, that’s where they want to be; they want to be with us. It’s like if I leave, I can come back and I know it’s a place where I’m welcome.
“I can play soccer,” he continued. “I can be a part of it.”
To register for COPA Soccer this year, visit YouthPower365.org.