Odancy Nsengiyumva didn’t know anyone in Cleveland when he and his family moved to the city from Uganda in 2017.

“I barely spoke English,” Nsengiyumva said. “I would just go to school and come straight back home every day.”

That changed when he started going to Corner 65, a sports camp for Cleveland’s young refugees and immigrants, when he was 12 years old. Now 17, Nsengiyumva volunteers as a camp coordinator with Corner 65. The camp, hosted every Tuesday by Re:Source Cleveland, served about 185 children from 14 different countries over this summer.

I came to camp for the first time on a Tuesday afternoon in early July. Corner 65’s organizers were picking kids up and bringing them to Re:Source’s headquarters on Urban Community School’s campus. Storm clouds rolled in as more and more children ran onto the soccer pitch to show off their skills. It poured rain as a group of boys practiced bicycle kicks in front of a goal. 

Irene Mucyo, an 18-year-old camp coordinator and longtime Corner 65 participant, described the kids in the program as a big family. 

“It cannot just be somewhere you go to, like a summer camp,” Mucyo said. “This is a community. It’s a family to me.”

As I returned to camp several times throughout the summer, I started to see what he meant. My visits helped me see the space as one for young newcomers to celebrate themselves and foster community while they settle into lives in Cleveland. (Signal Cleveland is identifying the kids in the photos below by just their first names out of respect for their privacy.)

My colleague, Najee Hall, chronicled Corner 65’s story from its early days to now. Read about all the people that make this program possible in his article here.

A girl is reflected in a puddle on a basketball court.
A child is reflected in a puddle on the basketball court. Credit: Michael Indriolo
A boy pours a handful of gravel over his hand.
A child pours gravel over his hands. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Left: Eliya rolls around on the soccer pitch. Right: Jackson stretches his jersey around his back.
Left: Eliya rolls around on the soccer pitch. Right: Jackson stretches his jersey around his back. Credit: Michael Indriolo
A boy holds a soccer ball, turning his body as he prepares to throw it.
Benjamin throws in the ball during a soccer match. Credit: Michael Indriolo
A young man looks off to the side of the camera.
Odancy Nsengiyumva, a camp coordinator. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Three boys lay down on a wet basketball court and pretend to swim.
Daniel, Benjamin and Vincent pretend to swim in a puddle on the basketball court. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Left: Irene Mucyo, a camp coordinator, rests his hand on a player during team huddle before a soccer tournament match. Right: Odancy Nsengiyumva talks strategy with his team before their match in a soccer tournament.
Left: Irene Mucyo, a camp coordinator, rests his hand on a player during team huddle before a soccer tournament match. Right: Odancy Nsengiyumva talks strategy with his team before their match in a soccer tournament. Credit: Michael Indriolo
A soccer ball rolls out of frame while two player's legs are shown chasing it.
Players chase the ball during a soccer match. Credit: Michael Indriolo
The setting sun casts a player’s shadow onto the soccer pitch. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Emmanuel. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Left: A soccer goal lays twisted up on the ground. Right: Sunlight beams through the trees surrounding the soccer pitch. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Irene Mucyo, a camp coordinator. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Irene Mucyo, a camp coordinator, switches slides with one of his players during a soccer tournament match. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Ilicile and Lailati roll around the soccer pitch. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Theriza and Jeanne. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Left: A volleyball, a shoe and a soccer net on the sidelines of the soccer pitch. Right: Shalom Boneri, a camp coordinator reaches for a basketball. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Shalom Boneri, a camp coordinator. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Jesus juggles a basketball. Credit: Michael Indriolo
A group of girls pile their hands on top of one another.
Becky Trout Ashenfelter brings her team in for a huddle before a touch football match during Re:Source Cleveland’s Corner 65 summer camp at Urban Community School in Cleveland’s Detroit Shoreway neighborhood. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Children group up for a photo. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Children play on the playground. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Eliya and Omari wrestle on the soccer pitch. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Esther reaches out toward Cecile after she caught a pass during a touch football match. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Abdul hangs on the fence of a soccer pitch. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Baraka shields his eyes from the sun. Credit: Michael Indriolo
Jackson lounges on the soccer pitch between games. Credit: Michael Indriolo
A child rests his hand on the soccer pitch between games. Credit: Michael indriolo

K-12 Education and Youth Reporter (he/him)
As a local visual journalist, I see my purpose in building relationships as much as reporting news. I’ve made my most impactful work only after pouring myself into my community.