( CNN ) -- In the aftermath of Haiti 's devastating earthquake in January 2010 , a group of dedicated amputees who share a love of soccer emerged as a symbol of survival and rebuilding . Team Zaryen , Haiti 's first all-amputee soccer team , travels to the United States this week for its first tour . The team will visit Washington D.C. and New York to conduct clinics and demonstration matches throughout the week as part of the `` Haitian Inspiration Tour . '' Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus and the health service organization Project Medishare , Team Zaryen was formed by Capitan Wilfred Macena , after he received a prosthetic limb thanks to the help of the Healing Haiti 's Children Program . Macena was able to quickly recover and return to his athletic lifestyle after regaining full mobility , and formed the soccer team of other amputee patients in September 2010 . The team coined the name Zaryen , which in Creole means tarantula , because the spider is known to continuously attack regardless of its wound . All 10 teammates received prosthetic limbs and a year of physical therapy from the same program . The team was formed as a way to encourage others to overcome the stigma associated with amputees and as an encouragement to others who have lost a limb , according to the tour 's website . The team 's tour begins Monday when it participates in a soccer clinic with wounded American service members at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center . It will then spend two days at an RFK Stadium practice field , current home of Washington D.C. 's professional soccer team D.C. United . The tour was formed in part as a way for Team Zayren to give back to the American military for their relief efforts following the earthquake . The team will also offer brief demonstrations of amputee soccer during professional U.S. soccer games in Washington D.C. and New York during the week .
The team is comprised of players who lost weight during the Haiti quake . It will hold training sessions and take part in demonstration matches . Zaryen is Creole for tarantula , which is said to enjoy eating despite its wounds .