Bob Long has been part of Dartmouth Youth Soccer Association for nearly two decades. First a parent on the sidelines, then as a coach, and now, for the past eight years, the president. 

His oldest daughter is now on the board as concession director. She started playing when she was four, and he started coaching with his youngest daughter the following year — all the way through college. The youngest is now an athletic trainer and worked with the club team for a while, with his wife helping out too. 

“It’s kind of a family affair for us,” he said. “I’m here every Saturday cooking.”

On Saturday, Aug. 16, Long and the rest of the association celebrated that spirit of community with their third block party. The event featured live music, games, bounce houses, a water sprinkler, farm animals and, of course, plenty of soccer.

“This is a great way to get the kids together before the season,” said parent Kristine Ferreira. “It’s just a great association. It’s like a big family. The director’s great, always looking out for the kids and their best interests.”

Children spent the afternoon kicking balls around, playing games and bouncing between activities.

“I like to kick the ball a lot,” said six-year-old Nora Rapoza.

“I like to get the goals,” added her teammate, Raelynn Medeiros, also 6, noting she had scored some this season. Both said the bounce houses were their favorite part of the day, though Rapoza made sure to mention she also enjoyed “the water sprinkler thingy.”

For 7-year-old Owen Ferreira, the soccer practice jokes from his coach were the highlight of his last season as he would ask, “How many cookies did you eat?” when the kids were running slow. 

And like many of the kids, his favorite part of the block party was “the bouncy house and the farm animals.”

Long said this year’s block party continues a tradition that began before the pandemic. The first event was held to celebrate teams at the state championship, then returned last year for the association’s 40th anniversary.

“It went well, so we decided to do it annually,” he said.

The celebration comes on the heels of a successful spring season. “We had a very good spring season, had about 550 to 600 kids in our rec program and club program and travel program,” Long said. “Our rec program is doing fantastic. Our numbers show that. We have a very strong club presence. We have a very strong town presence.”

With the fall season set to begin, Long said he expects participation to continue growing. And while organizing soccer for hundreds of children can be exhausting, “eight weeks straight in the spring and eight weeks in the fall,” he said it’s all worth it.

“We’ve been doing this a long time, so we’re very good at it,” Long said. “This is something we really enjoy doing.”