July 20, 2026
The power of play: FCA and Compassion International deliver holistic care to children through sports
FCA’s Chief Strategic Officer Jeff Martin: ‘Kingdom impact is multiplied when partners unite around a shared mission’
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The capital city of Mekelle felt the effects of the conflict when war between Ethiopia’s federal government and forces in the northern Tigray region erupted in 2020. Dubbed the Tigray Crisis, the two-year conflict significantly disrupted life and spread uncertainty throughout the region.
Compassion International Ethiopia (CIE) witnessed the effects of the conflict across its ministry. In Mekelle, the war deeply affected children and families, while church partners in other communities, including Jimma, also worked to support children facing ongoing hardship.
One of the centers asked a group of children to draw a picture of conflict. Pages splashed in red, images of one child hiding under his bed, depictions of violence — fear and despair palpable. They were then asked to draw a picture of hope. Pages filled with stick figures scattered across a soccer pitch, playing games and kicking a ball around — the inextinguishable power of play.
CIE noticed the stark differences in the drawings, but church partners lacked ways to engage them. Could sports help coax these kids out of their hurt to engage in true healing? What could play look like, and how would it help with the years of trauma and heavy hearts?
Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ (FCA) International Sports Affiliate in Ethiopia, Sheleme Bekele, grew up in a Compassion program. He knew how integral hope was to a young heart and the accessibility that sports had. As a Compassion program graduate and current sports ministry leader, he felt the Lord’s call to bring the two organizations together.
Both local organizations developed a program that integrated trauma-informed play, ensuring the children’s physical health as well as character building, trust, teamwork and an experiential deepening of their faith.
“Kingdom impact is multiplied when partners unite around a shared mission. We have seen that happen in amazing ways as Compassion and FCA have locked arms to minister to children through sports in Ethiopia,” shared FCA’s Chief Strategic Officer Jeff Martin.
In 2025, an FCA team, including Swayze Waters, Martin and Executive Vice President of Club Sports Shaun Smithson, joined with Compassion program directors to train coaches and church leaders through coaches training materials and FCA’s E3 Discipleship models, or “coaching the heart behind the jersey,” as FCA Regional Director of International for the Southeast Central Region Swayze Waters referred to it.
These equipped leaders now serve as spiritual and athletic guides for over 1,250 youth. Sports equipment and resources were also collected and distributed for full, holistic skills development, while they also hosted soccer tournaments and sports training.
“Many have passed through this project and achieved better opportunities, better lives,” Bekele said. “I was also able to coach many children who, like me, escaped the darkness and now live in the light.”
Jubilant cheers and hand claps coursed through the soccer pitch where athletes gathered at Mekelle Stadium for a sports festival and tournament, the first one held in three years. Boys wore jerseys of assorted colors, bounced on the balls of their feet in line for drills, and released years of pent-up energy and hurt as they dashed across the cement field, calling out to one another for the ball and to place teammates in position.
The light rain and wet ground did nothing to dampen the day, and fans sat scattered throughout the bleachers to watch and remember the freedom in abandoning worries to the wind. Smiles replaced stoic faces, and nimble bodies navigated cones and courts for footwork. Back-and-forth banter became normal conversation, another day of activity releasing tension and uncovering life beneath the pain.
One participant from Mekelle shared, “The conflict was a very challenging season in my life. The coaches here use sport to teach us how to have hope again.”
To hear the next generation has hope again is sweet fulfillment and answered prayers to the hearts of Compassion and FCA leaders. For both organizations, it is only the beginning, with plans to collaborate in more communities and countries.
About Fellowship of Christian Athletes
The Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ vision is to see the world transformed by Jesus Christ through the influence of coaches and athletes. Its mission is to lead every coach and athlete into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and His church. FCA’s guiding values are integrity, serving, teamwork and excellence.
Since 1954, FCA has used the powerful medium of sports and building relationships to reach the world for Jesus Christ. FCA is cultivating Christian principles by engaging, equipping and empowering coaches and athletes to know and grow in Christ and lead others to do the same so that lives are changed for current and future generations.
Visit Fellowship of Christian Athletes at fca.org and on Facebook, Instagram or X (formerly Twitter).
About Compassion International
Compassion International is a Christian child development organization working to release children from poverty in Jesus’ name. Founded in 1952, Compassion partners with more than 9,000 local churches in 29 program countries to deliver spiritual, economic, social, and physical care to over two million babies, children, and young adults in poverty. Ranked No. 11 in Forbes’ America’s Top Charities List in 2025, Compassion is a founding member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability and has a platinum rating with GuideStar (Candid). For more information about Compassion’s child development through sponsorship program, visit compassion.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and X.
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To interview a Fellowship of Christian Athletes representative, contact Hamilton Strategies, Media@HamiltonStrategies.com, Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096 ext. 105, or Jeff Tolson, ext. 108.
To interview a Compassion International representative, contact Taylor Koziarz, tkoziarz@us.ci.org, 980.428.4812.
