Yeah, that's right, WE ARE!!!!!
The following is a copy of an article I submitted to the Jersey County Journal AND to the Jersey County Star [now online]. My next step - and if you want to help, please let me know - is to send SEVERAL pictures of our teams to these papers, too. As you will read, we are doing several things right. Let's toot our own horn for a while. We all know that not all athletic programs in this town can claim this level of consistent performance. Happy reading . . . .
Success Equals The Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club
By Brad Kimble
One of the beautiful things about the Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club is the fact that it is still alive and growing. The Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club was established in 1991 as an opportunity to allow youth in our community to learn the game. Soccer is used as a tool to foster the character growth and development of its players and through this game, coaches can encourage players to develop the skills necessary to work with others, persevere through tough times, celebrate success, and control emotions. These principles provide the foundation for this organization and its efforts to remain active and growing in this community. While, at times, it seemed as though the obstacles outweighed the opportunities, Jerseyville Strykers is, in fact, growing. There are now five committed coaches that are focused on developing the best players in the Jerseyville area: Brad Kimble, coordinator and coach for the U-12 girls team; Ryan Arter, coach for the U-14 boys team; Robb Ridenhour, coach for the U-12 boys team; and, Brady Dabbs and Rusty Kallal, coaches for the two U-10 boys teams.
In the past year, Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club has been very active. Through its participation in indoor competitive leagues, hosting a 3V3 tournament, running concessions at the Jerseyville Legion during Little League baseball games, hosting a very successful youth camp, inviting Jami Swanner of the St. Louis Illusion and CORE Soccer Training to train our players, and winning championship titles with each of the boys’ teams, Strykers has developed a consistent reputation for excellence. Our neighboring towns acknowledge this, too. Coaches consistently compliment our players for their level of skill, unselfish play, and sportsmanship. The Strykers’ reputation is even to the point that a nearby club team encourages our players to consider joining their program – even though we beat them in a friendly exhibition game.
Of course, the success of the Strykers is largely dependent upon its financial supporters. Not only do parents foot the bill for uniforms and tournaments, but local businesses and philanthropists help the organization offset the costs of tournaments, supplies, shipping costs, and advertisements. The number of financial supporters has more than doubled in the past three years. This has allowed the Strykers program to increase its numbers of players from approximately 18 for most of its existence to nearly 80 for the past three years. It is with a deep sense of gratitude that the Strykers would like to say “Thank you” to those supporters. One way we express our thanks is to include the list of sponsors on our summer camp T-shirts, which is approximately 170 shirts. The following is a list of those sponsors:
The Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club would like to recognize and thank our sponsors for the 2009-2010 seasons: [In a really messed up order]
Alfonso’s Pizza
Plaza Cleaners & Laundry
Alton Physical Therapy
Prescription Shop
Arter & Sons Const.
Sackman Gas Co. Inc.
Bishop Family Eye Care
Schell Insurance
Heneghan and Associates, P. C.
State Street Antiques
IMA – Dr. John Palcheff Strang and Parish, LTD
Colonial Title & Escrow
Jerseyville Banking Center
Strauss Concrete Concepts
Lacy Ice Cream Distributing
The Homeridge
McDonalds
Turner’s Tumbling
Norman Brothers Inc.
We Be Ink
Phone Masters LTD
WJBM
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
History
There are many in our community that could do a much more adequate job explaining the history of the Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club. If you are one of those "if the know," I strongly encourage you to comment to this posting. I think we would all be interested in the specific details.
Here is what I do know . . . .
The Club was established in 1991 by a few men in the community to serve two basic purposes: 1) to grow the soccer players in Jerseyville; and 2) to promote strong Christian character traits in those players as they play the game. These purposes were carried out in two formats: traveling teams and summer camp. For many years, Stryker players were able to travel to local areas and enjoyed a certain level of success. The teams were typically hand-picked and would fluctuate each year. Again . . . . this part of the history is vague to me because I was not necessarily around to play or to coach any of the players.
Where I come on to the scene would be in 1999 when I helped with the summer camp. For the next two years I was one of the camp coaches, helping with the youngest age groups. When my oldest son began playing for the Parks and Recreation Department, I decided to coach. Stryker teams were practically at a stalemate. I heard about the Carlinville Kickoff Classic and the fact that Jerseyville teams would send one or two Stryker teams there. I called my previous Park and Rec. team and took them as my first co-ed Stryker team. At that point, I became passionate about helping the Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club grow into the best soccer organization in this area.
In 2005, I had a conversation with the Coordinators about the future of the Stryker program. We agreed that I should take it over because I not only had two of my own boys playing for the teams, but I also firmly believed in the Stryker's purposes. [By the way, I will have another post about that specific topic very soon.] I was a little over ambitious and in that year's Carlinville tournament, I coached two teams. Yes, I was crazy for that. The 2006 Stryker Camp was a transition year where I began to take the reins of the program. I began to add coaches and teamsand opportunities for play. I am proud of the fact that there are now five strong teams and six committed coaches.
Yes, I've left out a lot of details for you to fill in. Now it is your turn. I can't wait to read what you say.
Here is what I do know . . . .
The Club was established in 1991 by a few men in the community to serve two basic purposes: 1) to grow the soccer players in Jerseyville; and 2) to promote strong Christian character traits in those players as they play the game. These purposes were carried out in two formats: traveling teams and summer camp. For many years, Stryker players were able to travel to local areas and enjoyed a certain level of success. The teams were typically hand-picked and would fluctuate each year. Again . . . . this part of the history is vague to me because I was not necessarily around to play or to coach any of the players.
Where I come on to the scene would be in 1999 when I helped with the summer camp. For the next two years I was one of the camp coaches, helping with the youngest age groups. When my oldest son began playing for the Parks and Recreation Department, I decided to coach. Stryker teams were practically at a stalemate. I heard about the Carlinville Kickoff Classic and the fact that Jerseyville teams would send one or two Stryker teams there. I called my previous Park and Rec. team and took them as my first co-ed Stryker team. At that point, I became passionate about helping the Jerseyville Strykers Soccer Club grow into the best soccer organization in this area.
In 2005, I had a conversation with the Coordinators about the future of the Stryker program. We agreed that I should take it over because I not only had two of my own boys playing for the teams, but I also firmly believed in the Stryker's purposes. [By the way, I will have another post about that specific topic very soon.] I was a little over ambitious and in that year's Carlinville tournament, I coached two teams. Yes, I was crazy for that. The 2006 Stryker Camp was a transition year where I began to take the reins of the program. I began to add coaches and teamsand opportunities for play. I am proud of the fact that there are now five strong teams and six committed coaches.
Yes, I've left out a lot of details for you to fill in. Now it is your turn. I can't wait to read what you say.
Welcome to the Jerseyville Strykers Blog
Hello and welcome to the Jerseyville Stryker Soccer Club's blog.
There is always a little hesitation when using today's technology to highlight a group's accomplishments or recognize a player's skills. So please allow me to establish a few basic ground rules for this blog. First of all, I will be filtering all comments before they will be allowed to be visible to the mass public. Secondly, we all need to agree to limit the amount of person information shared. With that in mind, if and when a team or child needs to be recognized, I will do my best to only mention first names or division/team names. Thirdly, the PRIMARY purpose of this blog is to share information about the organization and the opportunities that are available.
With that, welcome. Explore and enjoy!
There is always a little hesitation when using today's technology to highlight a group's accomplishments or recognize a player's skills. So please allow me to establish a few basic ground rules for this blog. First of all, I will be filtering all comments before they will be allowed to be visible to the mass public. Secondly, we all need to agree to limit the amount of person information shared. With that in mind, if and when a team or child needs to be recognized, I will do my best to only mention first names or division/team names. Thirdly, the PRIMARY purpose of this blog is to share information about the organization and the opportunities that are available.
With that, welcome. Explore and enjoy!
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