VoleiPaz Colombia: How Volleyball Keeps Changing Lives in Cali

A few players arrived late, laughing, out of breath and eager to play, but the session had already begun. Accessing the court is not simple in El Poblado II, a neighbourhood in Cali's Aguablanca District where daily life has not always been easy.

Here, families actually decide whether or not their children can walk to training. Everything is shaped by the fact that the streets are unsafe on certain days. Who arrives, who stays and how much each hour on that court actually means.

In October and November of 2025, Let’s Keep the Ball Flying (LKTBF) partnered with VP Voleibol and nearby school I.E. Nuevo Latir to host VoleiPaz, which combines the Spanish terms for volleyball and peace, voleibol and paz. They ran 18 trainings and one final tournament to close the programme with a group of young people who kept coming back. For two months, they built friendships, chose honesty over winning and supported each other on and off the court.

Youth Volleyball in Cali: 71 Participants Show Up

In the end, 71 young people joined the sessions, 63% were girls, in a place where they are not always given equal access to sport. 20 to 30 came to every single practice. For families juggling safety, school and daily life, turning up every single week showed real commitment.

Natalia Lleras, LKTBF's Captain of Impact and VoleiPaz's Project Lead, ran this alongside a team of community leaders who became its backbone. They tracked who came, stayed close to families and built trust with the group. By the end, they were not just supporting the work. They were holding it together.

Challenges Running a Youth Sports Programme

About a month in, it became clear the sessions were not connecting with the group in the way they needed to. The team made a change and brought in a new coach. The shift was immediate.

Smaller logistical problems came up too. On a few occasions other activities had taken over the gym without warning, so the team introduced monthly reminders and clearer coordination to reduce disruptions. Life skills activities had been set at 15 minutes per session. It was not enough and 2026 is being planned with 30 minutes.

Safety was harder to solve. Some days fewer kids showed up because families did not feel comfortable with the journey. The best the VoleiPaz leaders could do was keep showing up and hold the space for the kids who did come.

Life Skills Through Volleyball and VoleiPaz in Colombia

During one training, a team thought they had won a game but had not followed the rules. The community leader did not step in. They asked them one question. Did they really win?

The group talked it through and collectively decided to give the point to the other team.

This was not a one-off incident. Players cheered each other, even when things were not going their way. When they lost points, they reset without getting upset. When they faced stronger teams, they still celebrated their earned points. High fives, encouragement and small celebrations that kept the energy up.

With time, that became the norm. Not just how they played but how they treated each other.

What Players and Families Say About VoleiPaz

Kevin, 15, described VoleiPaz as “a place where we learn to live together, to work as a team, to be more communicative at all times,” and said it taught him “not to give up, to keep fighting for what we want without doubting ourselves.”

Nayeth, 12, said she hopes it continues “teaching us how to play volleyball and keep teaching us valuable skills like trusting each other.”

Hamilton, 17, said: "I'm a big fan of the VoleiPaz group and I'm really enjoying the great opportunity to be part of it."

Elsia, one of the mothers who came to every practice, called the project "an inspiration." Another mother ended up on the court herself, a former volleyball player who found her way back to the game through her son’s sessions.

What Happened After the Programme Ended

The final day, 29 November 2025, closed with a tournament. The players left with mixed emotions, something they had built together was ending.

A few days later, they created a WhatsApp group and organised their own games. They kept asking when VoleiPaz was coming back.

Natalia Lleras, who has been behind the scenes from the beginning, reflected: “We wrapped up the two months not knowing if we'd be back. The players knew funding wasn't there to continue, but they didn't let it end. They started meeting up on their own, sending photos in their VoleiPaz t-shirts. Their way of saying, ‘We're still here. Ready whenever you are.’”

VoleiPaz 2026: Expanding Youth Volleyball

Everything above happened in two months. The 2026 edition is already running, with 108 young people, built on everything that went right and everything that did not in 2025. The same streets, the same families, a team that knows this place now and young people who never really stopped playing.

This time, it does not stop after two months. A full year of VoleiPaz is now secured. That means consistency, trust and time for something deeper to grow.

If you’ve followed this story, you’ve seen what is possible when a programme like this is given the chance to continue.

Through Adopt a Team, you can help bring programmes like VoleiPaz in Colombia to new communities and keep them running long enough to make a real difference.

Adopt your Team at lktbf.org/Adopt.