Ambassador Reynoso visits the children of 'La Villa de los Soñadores' in Madrid

USPA NEWS - The United States ambassador to Spain, Julissa Reynoso, visited this Thursday the boys and girls participating in 'La Villa de los Soñadores', a project of the Atlético de Madrid Foundation that promotes diversity, equality and inclusion in soccer. The Club Atlético de Madrid Foundation was created in 1997 with the aim of contributing through sport to humanitarian, cultural, educational and research activities.

The social project 'La Villa de los Soñadores' aims to offer a safe environment to minors at risk of social exclusion to develop their physical and mental abilities. This Thursday, the United States ambassador to Spain, Julissa Reynoso, visited the boys and girls participating in the project. "In sports we share the same values because we know that diverse, plural and dynamic societies offer more opportunities for everyone," said Ambassador Reynoso. "I wanted to come here to greet you and give you the push to continue practicing and supporting each other as a community and a team," she added in a conversation with the children of the project.

After asking how many of them were born outside of Spain, Ambassador Reynoso told them that "I am a migrant, I was born in the Dominican Republic," and stressed that "one of the things that is very particular about Amanda (Frisbie, American player for womens team of Atlético de Madrid) and mine is that we are women in professions where there are not many.” For her part, Frisbie, a professional player for ten years, said that “I love doing this because, when I was your age, we didn't have a professional women's soccer league in the United States. It encourages me a lot to see more and more girls playing and that this trend is getting bigger and bigger,” she pointed out.

“Since she is a soccer player and I want to be, I asked her for advice and she has taught me things,” she explained after the act, one of the girls participating in the project. “It was quite uncomfortable for me to be in a group with many boys and few girls,” said another boy. “Motive, you know? And now I'm just going to think about playing,” he added. "That we have to work hard to aspire to something," another pointed out. "That the United States ambassador is here to see us is an honor," explained a fourth child participating in 'La Villa de los Soñadores'. "I would be very grateful to the ambassador if she came to visit us and tell us that we can achieve our dreams," said another child. “That has inspired me a lot,” he concluded.