ECS Manassas employee and Ghana native Dominic Agyepong serves as the Vice President and Board member of a Prince William County community based organization called NGOZI (“Being a Blessing”). Based in Dumfries, Virginia, NGOZI organizes an annual charity soccer tournament to raise funds to support the needy among the African community in Northern Virginia and surrounding communities.
The organization started when a fellow Ghanaian named Baffour was involved in a car accident on his way home from work January 31, 2006. He suffered severe injuries to his spinal cord, leaving him permanently paralyzed from the waist down. Baffour did not qualify for medical assistance. With the help of NGOZI, FRIENDS OF BAFFOUR organized the first Baffour Charity Soccer Tournament in 2009 to raise funds to help him cope with his situation.
Baffour saw that there were many people in similar or worse situations who do not have the wonderful support system he had. He partnered with NGOZI to help members of communities in the DC-Maryland-Virginia area who found themselves in similar predicaments. NGOZI donates resources and provides financial support for those who have fallen on hard times due to an injury, terminal illness, loss of employment, or other unforeseen circumstances. The focus of the program is to help them get back on their feet and gain some independence, self-esteem, happiness, and to bring a sense of normalcy back into their lives. For many families and individuals, this second chance opens doors to greater self-sufficiency and crisis prevention. The Baffour Soccer Tournament is held annually in Prince William County, Virginia, with teams from local social organizations and sport clubs participating. Proceeds from the June 22, 2013 event were donated to the Courage F.U.N. Program, a charity operated by Prince William Soccer, Inc. For more information about this organization, please visit www.pwsi.org For more information about NGOZI, visit http://www.ngozi.org/