FRISCO, Texas (May 8, 2018) – US Youth Soccer is pleased to announce Cassidy Tshimbalanga and Kenneth Armijo as the recipients of the 10th annual US Youth Soccer William J. “Billy” Goaziou Scholarship.
The memory of Goaziou, who was involved in soccer for more than 25 years as a coach and administrator, is honored with two one-year scholarships in the amount of $1,000. The scholarships are awarded to one male and one female who will be attending a post-secondary education institution for the first time in fall 2018. The scholarships are awarded based on community service and giving back to the game of soccer.
An Alamo, Calif., native, Tshimbalanga embraces her passion for soccer and community service. She played for De Anza Force Soccer Club and Carondelet High School’s varsity team. She was a member of the state and regional US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (ODP) from 2014 to 2016, and she represented the Cal North ODP team at the 2015 and 2016 US Youth Soccer ODP Region IV Championships. In addition, Tshimbalanga received the opportunity to attend the U.S. Soccer National Training ID Camp in 2013.
Off the field, Tshimbalanga discovered a hunger to start and lead ASISTERSPROJECT.ORG, an award-winning global charity that changes lives and communities with the ultimate goal to build a global sisterhood. She hopes to attack poverty and help end violence inflicted on women and children. Tshimbalanga’s work with ASISTERSPROJECT.ORG has led her to receive the U.S. President’s Volunteer Service Award, the Jefferson Award for Public Service, as well as the Yale University Ebenezer Bassett Award.
Tshimbalanga plans to attend the University of California, Los Angeles in the fall of 2018.
A native of Portsmouth, R.I., Armijo displays excellence in both athletics and academics. A member of the Portsmouth High School varsity team, Armijo also played club soccer for Bruno United FC and Portsmouth Pirates, competing with the Portsmouth Pirates at the 2015 US Youth Soccer Region I Championships.
Armijo’s involvement off the field includes a significant list of accomplishments. 
While he maintains a 3.99 GPA and immerses himself into rigorous honors classes, he is currently involved in the First Robotics Team, Foreign Language Honor Society, National Honor Society, Science Olympiad and the Math Team. Up against 20 high school teams, Armijo was a medal winner in the Robot Arm event at the RI Science Olympiad. He also built and programmed a robot to conduct operations in a submarine environment as a participant in the Navy’s Undersea Technology Apprenticeship Program.
Upon graduating high school, Armijo will attend the Worcester Polytechnic Institute with plans to become an engineer.
The William J. “Billy” Goaziou Scholarship was created to honor Goazious’s involvement in soccer for more than 25 years as a coach and administrator. He served as treasurer of US Youth Soccer and the Florida Youth Soccer Association, as well as chairman of the US Youth Soccer budget and US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program committees. In 1994, he took office as the U.S. Soccer Federation's treasurer and was re-elected four times (1996, 1998, 2000 and 2004). Beyond the soccer world, Goaziou served his country in the U.S. Marine Corps.