Liv United Way volunteer s10

Lancaster's upcoming Unity Cup soccer tournament is in need of volunteers.

 EMILIO GARCIA | UNSPLASH

Many people in our area commute to work, driving from home to work and back each day. Those are the two places we tend to spend the most time throughout the week.

If you need to find me during the week, odds are you’ll find me either at home or at work. But if I’m not, I may be at a “third place,” a term coined by sociologist Ray Oldenburg. He identified home as the first place, and work as a second place.

Third places are public places where people gather freely, exchange ideas, build relationships and have a good time. This includes locations like coffee shops, churches, libraries, parks, recreation centers and sports fields. These kinds of places are important community spaces where people are on equal footing, and professional and social hierarchies are put aside.

Third places help people connect informally and function together in ways that tend to strengthen our community and democracy. Community events and volunteer service connected to those events can be important third places that provide opportunities to bring us together.

Unity Cup seeks volunteers

This weekend marks the kickoff of the Unity Cup, which is a World Cup-style soccer tournament that is hosted by the Lancaster Rec and Church World Service — Lancaster. The Unity Cup is designed to bring refugees, immigrants and community members together, and over the course of the eight-week tournament, Lancaster residents from around the world will join together to play soccer and build community.

In addition, community members are invited to attend games, cheer on the teams and meet neighbors. The tournament runs from Saturday, Sept. 9, through Saturday, Nov. 4, with games from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturdays at Roberto Clemente Field, 466 Rockland St., Lancaster.

The First Unity Cup in Lancaster was held in 2016, with four participating teams. The tournament grew in succeeding years and welcomed 16 teams the last year before the tournament was halted by COVID-19. This year’s tournament features 16 teams representing Afghanistan, Ecuador, Kenya, Thai Karen, Guatemala, Haiti, Bosnia, West Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mexico, United States, Central America, Peru, Inter-South America, Myanmar and Nepal.

The Lancaster Rec and Church World Service are looking for volunteers to help on tournament game days with a few different game-day roles. Volunteer roles include greeting, welcoming and directing players and guests; check-in for teams and guests; assisting with game operations; and photography.

All volunteers will be supported by Lancaster Rec and Church World Service staff, and arrival information and volunteer instructions will be sent ahead of the scheduled volunteer date.

To find out more and to volunteer, please visit tinyurl.com/LancUnityCup.

Book sale volunteers needed

Manheim Township Public Library is looking for volunteers to help support its annual book sale, which runs Monday through Thursday. The sale is the library’s single largest fundraiser. There are a variety of times and volunteer roles available, including family-friendly roles. To find out more and to volunteer, please visit tinyurl.com/MTLibrarySale.

Find more volunteer opportunities

The United Way of Lancaster County’s Get Connected volunteer portal connects community members with hundreds of projects every year. Be sure to visit us at uwlanc.galaxydigital.com regularly and sign up for updates as new volunteer opportunities are submitted.

Joel Janisewski is director of the volunteer center and community listening for United Way of Lancaster County.

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