Dynamo Hurricane Relief Week to benefit local youth soccer programs affected by Hurricane Ike

HOUSTON, TEXAS (October 11, 2008) – The Houston Dynamo will use their next three home matches to help the Houston area recover from Hurricane Ike with Dynamo Hurricane Relief Week, which kicked off at a press conference Thursday.

To benefit recovery efforts, the Dynamo will honor local emergency workers, collect monetary donations and soccer equipment for local clubs, and conduct several Dynamo Charities fundraisers during their games October 12, October 15, and October 18. All proceeds will be distributed to Houston- and Galveston-area soccer clubs by the South Texas Youth Soccer Association on behalf of Dynamo Charities.

Before each game, the Dynamo Drive Series, presented by Infinity Insurance, will collect soccer equipment in conjunction with the U.S. Soccer Foundation Passback Program, the South Texas Youth Soccer Association, and MLS Works to benefit local teams affected by Hurricane Ike. The Dynamo will also set up donation centers for each game. Donations may also be made online at HoustonDynamo.com via Dynamo Charities.

“I can’t overstate enough how important this is,” Dynamo president and general manager Oliver Luck said. “We’re proud to do our part to help Houston in a time of need, and we hope our efforts and those of our fans and partners will help people in the Houston and Galveston area start returning to some sense of normalcy.”

For the Sunday, October 12 game against D.C. United, presented by The Methodist Hospital System, the Dynamo will invite local first responders to participate in an on-field ceremony. At halftime, the Dynamo will honor Methodist Hospital employees who worked 48 consecutive hours surrounding the hurricane and three civilian heroes nominated by fans in an online contest. The Methodist Hospital System will hold a blood drive from 2:00-6:00 p.m. at nearby Hofheinz Pavilion. The Dynamo will wear white jerseys for the game, just the second time in team history they have worn white jerseys for a home game, and the autographed jerseys of the 11 starters will be auctioned off to fans. All Dynamo proceeds from the auction and from on-site parking will benefit youth soccer teams.

On Wednesday, October 15, when the Dynamo host the San Jose Earthquakes in a game postponed from September 20 by Hurricane Ike, the Dynamo will offer free tickets to children aged 14 and under and $10 tickets to adults for the 8:00 p.m. match, presented by Bud Light. A portion of the ticket proceeds will go toward helping local soccer clubs affected by the hurricane.

When the Dynamo host the Los Angeles Galaxy at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 18, presented by Amigo Energy, the Dynamo will hold an on-field presentation to announce their contribution to hurricane relief efforts.

Currently in first place in the MLS Western Conference, the Dynamo (11-5-10, 43 points) have won seven consecutive home games in all competitions and are 10-1-5 in their last 16 games. The team will begin play in the MLS Cup playoffs in November. For more information, please log on to www.HoustonDynamo.com or call (713) 276-7500.