Majied Ali recognized as an Urban Hero in Scarborough

(October 24, 2014) – Majied Ali, a founder of the Islamic Soccer League, has been recognized as an Urban Hero in Scarborough.

Ali founded the League in 1994 as a small recreational program for 34 local children with two volunteer coaches and it has now grown into a multi-faceted league with over 100 volunteer coaches catering to over 1600 participants, ages 5 to 18.

The annual Urban Hero Award is a Metroland Media Toronto initiative and is run across communities in the City of Toronto.

“They are for individuals who stand out in a crowd because they have made a difference in our neighbourhoods,” states the Urban Heroes website. “The awards are for groups and businesses that are committed to making our community a better place to live.”

This year, 18 community leaders were honoured in the categories of arts and culture, business, community, education, environment, health and science, and sports.

The Islamic Soccer League is community-based, non-profit organization whose stated mission is ‘to nurture good moral character and provide opportunities for players to socialize with others successfully and to learn positive people skills.’

“Through soccer Islamic Soccer League (ISL) works to instill a stronger sense of self-worth in its players based on their mastery of skills and understanding of the game,” sates the ISL website. “Players have the opportunity to assume leadership, cooperate with others; question actions and regulations and accept responsibility for their own behaviour.”

[The 2014 Scarborough Urban Hero Award recipients photo credit: MIKE POCHWAT, Inside Toronto]