On Saturday, families, soccer players, local leaders, and donors celebrated the restoration of Freedom Elementary School’s soccer field.”Every day I get to see kids running, rolling, playing, building friendships, avoiding conflicts, and growing in confidence,” Freedom Elementary School Principal Angelique Llamas said.The project was made possible through a partnership between the Pajaro Valley Sports Foundation, Driscoll’s, and the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County.”It’s an investment in kids’ lives, especially in this community where there are no city or county parks, there’s not a lot of programming for kids,” Santa Cruz County Deputy Probation Officer Gina Castaneda said.The project began in 2017 and is now complete, although the field has been in use since 2022. The field has been officially named in honor of Ken Morena, a beloved Driscoll’s employee and advocate for youth sports in Pajaro Valley.”Future generations are going to come here and people are going to meet at Ken Morena Field and that thought is just unbelievable to me,” Morena said. The field is home not only to the elementary school, but also to the Pajaro Valley United Soccer Club and the Aztecas soccer program.Upgrades to the site include full grading and drainage of the parking lot and field, installation of new fencing and turf, a soccer-themed mural, a memorial bench, and a new message and scoreboard.”Keep playing, using this field and being conscious of the fact, the more time they’re here, the less time they’ll have to get into trouble somewhere else, so I hope they wear this field out,” Morena said. The Pajaro Valley Sports Foundation is working with schools across Santa Cruz County to figure out their next project
FREEDOM, Calif. —
On Saturday, families, soccer players, local leaders, and donors celebrated the restoration of Freedom Elementary School’s soccer field.
“Every day I get to see kids running, rolling, playing, building friendships, avoiding conflicts, and growing in confidence,” Freedom Elementary School Principal Angelique Llamas said.
The project was made possible through a partnership between the Pajaro Valley Sports Foundation, Driscoll’s, and the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County.
“It’s an investment in kids’ lives, especially in this community where there are no city or county parks, there’s not a lot of programming for kids,” Santa Cruz County Deputy Probation Officer Gina Castaneda said.
The project began in 2017 and is now complete, although the field has been in use since 2022.
The field has been officially named in honor of Ken Morena, a beloved Driscoll’s employee and advocate for youth sports in Pajaro Valley.
“Future generations are going to come here and people are going to meet at Ken Morena Field and that thought is just unbelievable to me,” Morena said.
The field is home not only to the elementary school, but also to the Pajaro Valley United Soccer Club and the Aztecas soccer program.
Upgrades to the site include full grading and drainage of the parking lot and field, installation of new fencing and turf, a soccer-themed mural, a memorial bench, and a new message and scoreboard.
“Keep playing, using this field and being conscious of the fact, the more time they’re [youth] here, the less time they’ll have to get into trouble somewhere else, so I hope they wear this field out,” Morena said.
The Pajaro Valley Sports Foundation is working with schools across Santa Cruz County to figure out their next project
