EDINBURG – Youths at the Evins Regional Juvenile Center in Edinburg got a chance to get away from their daily routine and play soccer with some professionals.

A select group of juveniles were given a chance to learn about soccer and life skills from the RGV FC Toros, the Rio Grande Valley’s pro soccer team.

“I never thought something like this would happen while I was in here. I just felt like I wasn’t here for a little bit, you know,” one juvenile said.

The idea for the soccer clinic came from Toros player Kai Greene. who is a mentor at the center.

“It’s important that these kids get exposed to some sort of positivity. You never know if this could spark some kind of change in them. Once they get out of here, maybe I want to play soccer in college or just finish high school,” Greene said.

The clinic marks the first time an outside group participated with juveniles at the center since Tamu Steptoe became the superintendent at Evins last year.

“This helps them to see, ‘Hey I can be one of these youths.’ Because the players are still in the age range a lot of the youth here (are). So they can take this as a positive experience when they go back into the community,” she said.

“I really… appreciate the team for coming out here and showing us a good time. Showing us that we still have opportunities out there for us,” another juvenile said.

The Toros even got a kick themselves from some of the skills displayed by the juveniles.

The superintendent added the success of the clinic may lead to the creation of a soccer team at the center.