Lindsay Kraun’s love for soccer has found its way into her work as a pediatric occupational therapist after she started working with a client who has cerebral palsy.
Kraun started playing soccer at age 6 and played for the varsity soccer team at North Springs High. Now, she plays a few nights a week in an adult recreational league at Dunwoody Springs Elementary School.
“It’s been a big part of my life since I was a kid, and it’s still a big part of my life now,” she said.
Credit: Rough Draft Atlanta
Credit: Rough Draft Atlanta
Cerebral palsy is a motor disorder that affects movement and posture. When her client said his goal for therapy was to get better as a soccer goalkeeper, she looked into how his therapy sessions could be more like soccer training.
She searched online and found the U.S. Men’s and Women’s National CP teams and the feeder program, CP Soccer. Reaching out to CP Soccer, Kraun was told the organization had teams across the country — but not in Atlanta.
“My follow-up question with that was, what can I do to get one started?” Kraun said.
The founder told her to find a coach and a field. Kraun said finding the coach was easier because she plays and can coach. She recruited two good friends to coach or referee.
“The harder part was finding the field, and that’s because there’s a lot of teams and not enough space for everybody,” she said.
By May, CP Soccer Atlanta had its first practice. She thought they’d have one practice, take off the summer and resume in the fall.
“We did that one practice, and families were like, ‘So, when’s the next one?’ And some of them were even going, ‘I’ll see you next week,’” she said.
Practices were held every other week at Cauley Creek Park in Johns Creek during the summer. She planned to start a short season in August.
“My original plan for a seven-week season went quickly out the window in favor of giving our players more time on the field after I kept hearing from parents how much their kids loved playing and looked forward to Sundays,” Kraun said.
Range of motion, bilateral coordination, motor planning, praxis and balance, among other skills, are challenging for people with cerebral palsy. This can make it difficult for them to move quickly, change directions and possess, pass and shoot the ball. And Kraun can work with them on this, and welcomes players ages 5 to 18.
“Players who were once hesitant are not afraid to go for the ball — sometimes to the point of me having to remind them we can’t pull on jerseys — and players who may have once been more stationary are now running the entire practice,” Kraun said.
Families have high costs with a child who has a disability, and Kraun didn’t want to add to their expenses. She depends on donations to rent fields and buy shirts and equipment.
“It’s 100 percent free to families because we want them to be able to come out and their kids to get to enjoy playing the sport and get to learn the sport and learn their way around the sport,” she said.
HOW TO HELP
To donate to CP Soccer, go to cpsoccer.us/take-action.
If your child or someone you know is interested in participating, sign up on their website or email atlanta@cpsoccer.us.
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