RWJBarnabas Health and the Players Development Academy recently unveiled Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset Community Field, a new mini-turf soccer field at the Tea Street Sports Complex in Bound Brook.
The 40-by-70-foot field was the result of a collaboration between RWJBarnabas Health and Players Development Academy.
The PDA Urban Initiative provides premier soccer turf facilities, coaching and playing opportunities to children living in underserved urban communities.
T-Mobile awarded a $50,000 Hometown Grant to Somerset Health Care Foundation to support the project.
RWJBH officials obviously feel exercise is a crucial component to living healthy lifestyles and a great way to improve one’s mental and physical health.
Soccer is the global game, and, as its popularity is surging in New Jersey and across the U.S., the hope is that access to these fields and new programming will lead to more opportunities from an athletic and academic standpoint for kids living in urban communities. This field is less than 4 miles from PDA.
This small-sided turf soccer field offers a platform to keep kids from Bound Brook and South Bound Brook active, enjoying the game of soccer and away from other potential distractions.
With this project completed, the PDA Urban Initiative has now opened six small-sided turf soccer fields in underserved urban communities throughout New Jersey, while reinforcing RWJBarnabas Health’s commitment to creating healthier communities.
Community leaders from Bound Brook and South Bound Brook were joined by leadership from Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset, RWJBarnabas Health and PDA last week to officially open the field.
As part of the grand opening, a group of PDA alumni, including Rutgers University soccer players Allison Lynch and Anthony O’Donnell, played a mini game with kids in the community.
