Heart BEAT

Soccer Program Wouldn't Exist Without Volunteers

Youth Soccer Program Gets Ready To Begin Its Season, Program Runs Annually On All-Volunteer Coaching, Organizing And Support

WAITSBURG - For the Blue Mountain Youth Soc- cer Association in Waits- burg, about 50 to 60 chil- dren get to learn how to play soccer because of the hard work of many local volunteers.

Heather Baker, who co- ordinates the association's practices, games, has been donating her time to lead the organization for the past six years. Before her, the group was led by other Waitsburg moms Darleen Dozier and Joanna Lanning, Baker said.

"It has been around a long time," she said. "It's pretty low key."

The parents of the players organize soccer prac- tices, games, teams and equipment to compete each fall against youth soccer teams in Dayton.

And the reason Baker says she and the other vol- unteers give so much time to the league is for the kids.

"The kids just enjoy soc- cer so much," she said.

Baker herself has had four children play in the league. Even though all of the coaches are unpaid vol- unteers, each family pays $20 per athlete so the league can pay for insurance, paint for the fields, soccer balls and other equipment, soccer nets, medals and trophies, she said.

The youth soccer season begins once school starts and it finishes before its gets too dark and cold after school, which is about eight weeks of a season.

Last year, the league had four coaches. The kids are grouped onto teams by their grade in school and there's usually four or five teams total. The ages range from first through sixth grade.

In addition to learning skills on the field, the youth soccer league also prepares kids for other aspects of life.

"It teaches them starting at a young age how to work as a team and win and lose graciously," Baker said.

The volunteers are most- ly younger moms and dads of kids in the league who want to help the commu- nity and their kids, she said. Some grandmas also come out to help and some high school students offer to ref- eree games. Baker said the league is always looking for more coaches - it doesn't matter their skill levels or experience.

"It doesn't matter," she said. "They're just going to go chase the ball anyway."

Waitsburg resident and Dayton teacher Clint Reser and his wife Sarah, also a Waitbsurg teacher, will both be volunteering this year. Clint Reser coached last year because he had signed his son up to play and his son's team was lacking a coach. He said there was an unusually high turnout of kids and he coached the first and second grade team.

"We signed our own kids up and it looked like there wasn't going to be a coach," Clint Reser said.

So, he stepped up to the plate. He had played soccer in grade school and junior high, he said. Two of Clint and Sarah Reser's sons are in the league this year and Sar- ah Reser decided to also step up and handle more of the behind-the-scenes jobs that require organization skills. Todd Dimak will help Clint Reser coach this season.

He said it helps the coaches to have more than one in charge to work around work schedules. And now, Clint Reser is hooked. He said one major advantage of coaching is that he gets to spend more time with his sons.

"The best part is being able to coach my own kids," he said.

He said he likes that he knows all of the kids on his team and that they are a blank canvas and can be taught the fundamentals. He enjoys watching his team members improve throughout the season.

Without the volunteers, he said the soccer league wouldn't exist. Not only do the parents coach, but they also provide snacks and transport kids who aren't their own to games and practices, Clint Reser said.

"(Soccer) is a good thing that I did when I was a kid," he said. "I'm glad my kids do it."

The league still needs volunteers. Contact Baker at 337-9491 to find out how you can help.