Rio Favela Seeks to Improve Kids’ Lives Through Golf

Children learn the basics of golf from caddie Marcelo Modesto, on the grounds of the Nusacquilombo cultural center in Cidade de Deus or City of God favela, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Dec. 9, 2021. Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo

RIO DE JANEIRO—Saturday is not a school day, so kids in Rio de Janeiro’s City of God favela fill the dirt roads playing soccer or pretending to be cops and robbers around dangerous alleys.

All the while, parents are watching over them, hoping their children don’t get scouted by drug dealers seeking messengers and couriers.