BU Soccer Fest to raise funds, excitement in Haitian community

Boston’s soccer-crazed Haitian-American residents will get a chance to root for their homeland’s team at Boston University’s 10,000-seat Nickerson Field over the Labor Day weekend.

Boston’s Caribbean Integration Community Development (CICD) has teamed up with BU to stage Soccer Fest, billed as a cultural celebration and fundraiser centered around an exhibition match between the university’s varsity team and the Federation Haitienne de Football’s national squad on Sun., Sept. 3 at 4:30 p.m., with a pre-game party set for 2:45 p.m. where the festivities will include entertainment by DJ SuperDuke, gift giveaways, special guests, and a kids’ zone.

CICD president Donald Alexis anticipates an exciting community event and sees this as an opportunity for Boston’s Haitian community to come together for a unique show of sports and culture.

“Its great to showcase what we have as a culture, so to have an event that showcases what we’re good at is a win-win for the community,” he said.
CICD is a community development organization that is active in providing affordable housing options for Boston’s Caribbean population, particularly Mattapan’s growing Haitian community. The funds raised from this event will be put toward the organization’s housing developments and community programming, including Cote Village, a 52-unit apartment building that is under construction on Cummins Highway.

BU will prove a strong test for the Haitian team, which will be competing for the first time as a team before the Summer Olympics in Tokyo in 2020.
Alexis hopes to see more of these kinds of collaborations in the future.

“It’s a great thing for institutions like Boston University to be active in the larger community. The Haitian community of Mattapan is one of the most underserved populations in Boston, so to have events like this that put the Haitian community in the forefront is very important. I’m very grateful for universities like BU that are willing to invest in the community.”

Tickets for the Soccer Fest are $15. For more information, visit cicdsoccerfest.org or call 617-291-1689.