Pistolas FC 2011

MARKHAM - The Pistolas F.C. officially landed their main partner today as famous Main St. Markham pub, THE DUCHESS (http://www.duchessonline.com/), agreed to sponsor the team jerseys.

The agreement cleared the way for PFC to then turnaround and donate the league issued uniforms through the passback program at TFC games, whereby needed children and adults in impoverished and war torn countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and South America can get uniforms and equipment they would have never had the luxury of having.

"We really wanted to give back, and do something positive. We are so fortunate and blessed to be living a life of luxury where greed and abundance is the norm. We thought what a great way to give back through something we all love and unite over - soccer. To those receiving these uniforms, just simply the socks are a welcomed blessing, let alone the shorts and jersey! They are so grateful, and when people help other people out there's less bittnerness and animosity in the world."

"Being so lucky and so fortunate, springing for our own custom shorts and shirts ends up benefitting ourselves, but also gives us the ability to donate the entire kit."

The Passback program (http://www.passback.org/) was founded by Brendan and Mike Moylan, the founders of Eurosport, who created the Passback Program in 1989 when a family friend came into the old Eurosport store looking for some gear to send to his daughter, a Peace Corps volunteer working with children in Malawi. While looking for gear that they could send to her, the Moylan brothers realized that they had closets full of their old soccer gear that they no longer used, but was too good to throw away, so they boxed it up and send it off to her. And they didn't stop there. It dawned on them that if they had closets full of equipment, there must be other players out there whose garages, closets and basements also overflowed. Recognizing a need in the world-wide soccer community, they created the Passback Program. They have since passed the Program over to the U.S. Soccer Foundation, but remain one of the Foundation's primary partners and the Program would not be possible without their support.