Video by Ahmad Safi

Inspiring low-income Head Start kids to kick off the couch this summer was the message at Bartlett Park on Monday.

Chris Listau, a 6-foot-7-inch inspiration in cleats and soccer uniform, worked through simple drills with 13 high-spirited children between 3 and 5 years old.

A lifelong soccer enthusiast, Mr. Listau said soccer is one sport that doesn’t require a lot of costly equipment and is easy to play when the children’s parents are at work this summer.

“Some of the world’s greatest soccer players came from families that didn’t have a lot,” said Mr. Listau, who coaches youth soccer in Kansas City. “(But) they had somewhere to play, a ball, and they took advantage of the opportunity.”

Through his employer in St. Joseph, American Family Insurance, Mr. Listau arranged to have 35 soccer balls donated to the kids and the Head Start program. The soccer balls were distributed during Head Start’s monthly Family Fun Night.

Cayden Jackson, 5, loves to ride his bicycle but has never played sports. He enthusiastically took to his new soccer ball, kicking it downhill and waiting for someone to kick it back.

His grandmother, Sue Wilson, a Head Start teacher, watched nearby. She said in an era of rampant obesity, too many low-income children are on the couch playing video games or watching television.

“We see that a lot, but we try to offer them as much of the outside activities,” Ms. Wilson said. “Any introduction to new things like this helps.”

Ahmad Safi can be reached

at ahmadsafi@npgco.com.