League Announcements

Anyone seen our new jerseys, I’ve heard they’re pretty cool? If you had, let me know what they look like because WE STILL are waiting on United Sports to deliver them. With that being said, we’ve been given another date for delivery, October 21^st, and we know what happened with the last one … so I’m doing my best to keep my composure here … All items were ordered on time and in line with the past seasons, however, this amazing backlog has us where we are at.

Now, we contemplated a few options here: one, reschedule pictures, yet again, in light of our uniform quandary, or two move forward with pictures for October 9^th. Given what a reschedule would entail, and the availability of our photographer, we have decided to move forward with pictures with or WITHOUT new uni’s. Please click HERE for the schedule and HERE for the photo volunteer schedule.

Please beg, borrow, and you know … A jersey from someone in the spring for pictures if you’d like to ensure you have one for pictures. Last spring’s jerseys are identical to the fall. In the case of not knowing or having someone to borrow from, please improvise as best you can.

In light of the delay (and keeping our composure), I am expecting a sizable discount on the uni’s we’ve ordered. This discount, and or refund, would trickle to you as well. When we know what that will be, we will let you know. But better believe recompense will be made. Your patience and understanding have been very appreciative by us, sincerely. We are not the only league dealing with this same issue, so we are not alone.

In a much brighter set of news, we are the recipient of our second financial contribution made by SWM Rec’s own Brittany Dunham. Not only does she provide her time and effort free of charge in her service to the league, she is also donating any and all income received through this fund raiser offered through Pink Zebra. Please buy as much product as you can by clicking HERE. Products offered through this most kind gesture can be found HERE.

Finally, we are approaching the runway of our final destination of October 30^th. We will have a Coaches Appreciation event for all of those who registered to Coach, an end of season volunteer event, that will help those whom have not had a chance to volunteer and would like to, that will go to tidying up the field in preparation for winter. More details on these to come.

As always, I love you and very much appreciate you being with us this season.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: To all of those volunteers that have showed out, willing to serve, our season is not possible without you. Special thanks to John Papanek for lining the fields this week. Way to step up and deliver!

Our area has recently gotten some national recognition, by way of ESPN and WMYSA (which we are associated with). A contact of ours, Chris Keenan, has the privilege of doing the color commentary for NCAA College soccer games on ESPN3 and ESPNU.

In the ESPN zoom strategy sessions this past week, with the play by play and producers, he was asked about how this area seems unusually good at soccer.

Not only did our area have the 2021 U18 USYSA National Championship but also in the next two ESPN games they broadcast will feature 10 local players, which is unusual.  8 WMU players plus Mikey Ketteman Oakland U (Portage Central) and Luke Morrell MSU (Plainwell). 

After Chris Keenan explained our regional soccer structure, they agreed that one topic of discussion is an explanation of how Southwest Michigan is a soccer area and how AYSO, WMYSA league and Clubs have played a big role in the promotion and execution of the sport and how this ultimately built the foundation and structure for kids to learn, grow, build confidence and ultimately have success. 

Some of these kids are finding success on the pitch at a higher level …. but the point must be made that the child’s success maybe away from the pitch, but it was the confidence they gained from playing on a team with their friends!  Very proud to be a part of our soccer community and thank you to the WMYSA Board and all the Volunteers who make this possible for the kids in our community.

If interested the TV icon next to the games will lead you to the broadcast.
https://wmubroncos.com/sports/mens-soccer/schedule/2021

October 6 at 5pm Oakland @ WMU
October 13 at 4pm vs Michigan State University @ WMU

If interested in attending WMU Soccer Complex 4502 Campus Dr Kalamazoo MI 49008
WMU Local players:

#3 Brennan Creek                        Hackett
#5 Jaylen Shannon                      St Joseph
#6 Dylan Sing                               Lakeshore
#7 Max Keenan                            Hackett
#12 Eron “Roni” Sylejmani        Gull Lake
#13 Connor Burkett                     Mattawan
#20 Levi Crooks                           Portage Northern
#26 Landon Fischer                     Concord (IN)

Yep, we’re great at soccer, now if that only pertained to uniform delivery ..

Good, beautiful Tuesday afternoon to you all (wanted to avoid Monday). Hope all of you are doing well. The Lakeshore Varsity Cross Country team had reached out to me earlier this season to see if we would be so kind as to share our fields with them and so I obliged.

Without it, our local team would not have had a home course and so we were happy to share. With that, they are scheduled to be at the fields today from 3:15PM to 5:30PM. We advised them to use the parking lot off of Rockey Weed. Whether or not that happens will be seen, but I’ll be honest this is an area we (SWM Rec) are working on at getting better at (promise).

Games and practices should go on as scheduled, but I wanted to give you a heads up that there might be more people and traffic at the fields than ordinarily is the case. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Also, remember to complete your volunteer task if you did not opt-out in your registration. If we do not have record of you fulfilling this task, we will apply the opt-out fee to your account at the conclusion of the season. Anyway, enjoy this diamond of a day today, as we all know just how dreary Michigan weather can become later in the fall.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: Three shoutouts today, one for SWM SC President Gil ‘The Godfather of SW Michigan Youth Soccer’. He turned 70 this month and we are all appreciative of his service and dedication to the game. Happy Birthday Gilly! #Total

Second, wanted to point out one of two Coaches for the extraordinary season’s they are having. Coach Pschigoda and his U14 team have jumped out to an undefeated season (4 – 0). For this age group, they travel locally and play other local teams which include Bridgeman, Berrien Springs, Dowagiac, and Coloma. Many of the players on his team have come up through the years in our league and are demonstrating just how dominant we can be. #Dominance

Third, and certainly not the least, Rookie Head Coach Traci Kachorek and her band of renegade players have awoken to become soccer lady giants on the field. She dropped the first game of the season but has seen an offensive tidal wave that has included double digits scoring output from her lady soccer players. She observed her team’s performance, made some very strategic and savvy adjustments, and her team is now playing an outstanding level of soccer. I now refer to her as Head Coach Traci ‘The Belichick of Soccer’ Kachorek. Once a spectator now a dominant force on the field. #Power

Happy Monday, my hope is that none of you have a case of the Mondays (insert your Office Space thought here) … If you do, I completely understand, it is Monday.

Anyway, as you know we have been working with Berrien County Health Department and MSYSA throughout the past 18 months dealing with Return to Play, Contact Tracing, and COVID Quarantine. We have been very fortunate as a league to have been as prepared and proactive as we have been regarding this illness thanks to the hard work of SWM SC’s Gil Urban, Jay Meeth, and Superwoman (she knows who she is). This season is no different.

In response to questions we’d had as of late, SWM reached out to Berrien County Health Department for updates to the community and school quarantine regulations.  Our goal here is to address soccer players return to play quarantine options when in a close contact exposure quarantine. 

There are two approved options by the Berrien County Health Department Health Officer:    

For those exposed to a COVID-19 positive individual, quarantine periods are as follows:  

1) Quarantine for a period of 10 days from date of last exposure, if no symptoms develop during this time individuals can return to normal activities after day 10.  

2) Quarantine for a period of 7 days from date of last exposure, if no symptoms develop during this time AND individual receives a negative test on day 5, 6 or 7, then individual can return to normal activities after day 7.  

*In both options we ask individuals to continue to monitor for symptoms through day 14 post exposure.   Also, anyone who is fully vaccinated does not have to quarantine if identified as a close contact. They should monitor for symptoms for the 14 day period (daily health screenings). 

Additionally, if an individual has had COVID-19, they do not need to quarantine for up to 90 days after individual isolation period if identified as a close contact.    

MSYSA R2P guidelines indicate we are to follow local health department guidance.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate in bringing those to our attention. Remember that health matters are a private matter and that we will keep these items strictly confidential.

Have a great week.

Jefferson

Folks, another week is almost in the books and it’s been another week of extraordinary progress. I still can’t believe it. Often, people say, why is it you love this community so much? How and why? Well, let me provide a couple examples:

1. We are the beneficiary of our first league sponsor: BARODA PIZZA owned and operated by Mr. Sam Singh. He has seen the progress and has sponsored our league with a sizable gift and for it we are tremendously grateful. Soon, we will have his sponsorship recognized at our facility. Please visit his business as many times as you can and buy as many pizzas as you can. Their address is:

Baroda Pizza Company

www.barodastore.com

9691 Cleveland Ave

Baroda, MI 49101

269.466.2000

They provide dine-in, curbside pickup, and delivery for specialty pizzas that include the Baroda Pizza House Special, Tandoori Chicken Pasta, Delights of India, Mexican Pizza, and traditional favorites such as Pepperoni, Sausage, Veggie, etc. Baroda Pizza is SWM Rec’s choice for a gameday slice.

• They say there’s this referee shortage and we’ll be lucky to have one for games. To that our SWM Rec community says ‘What referee shortage?’ have you seen our list of referees? Incredible. There was a need and our community delivered, resoundingly. Not to say we couldn’t use a few more, but shoot, we’re ahead of the curve!

• Several had voiced their thoughts on providing a Coach and Player Curriculum for each age group, and BAM! Coach U and it’s weekly newsletter. Charisma and Coach Jeni Tyler have come up with some nice guidance for each age group.

• No volunteers? That hasn’t been our issue, we’ve had the best volunteer participation I’d seen us have. So much so, we’ve been having trouble finding jobs for folks to do.

• Coach shortage? Ha, our community has stepped up to the tune of 70+ coaches!

I mean the list is endless and I could go on forever. The point that I am trying to make is that we do truly have the best folks in Michigan! Now, of course, there are areas we can improve upon, like PARKING (and leaving people room to exit on the gravel), better volunteer coordination, the uniform delay saga, and the like but all in all, one can’t help but stand back and see what a gem we have in our league. SWM Rec, I love you. Thank you for being so awesome.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: For this one, it’s just a note of my appreciation to all of you for joining our league. You’ve made it special. #bestcommunityever

Friendly reminder that the Lakeshore Youth Soccer Complex (‘LYSC’) is closed today for field treatment. No practices or games are to be held. LYSC will reopen tomorrow afternoon for games and/or practices if scheduled. For any questions lemme know.

Remember to fulfill your volunteer service if you did not opt-out of volunteering. If we do not have record of your service to the league by season’s end an opt-out fee will be applied to your account.

Big shout out to those who stepped up to referee. Once a weakness is turning to an advantage in our favor thanks to Lakeshore Varsity Soccer, Coach Brian Samuel, The Derek and Jeni Tyler Family, Mark Smith, Sr. Varsity Players – Justin Hafling, John Emerson, Connor White, and Rachel Needles. So, while others are looking, we look to have ; ). We still need mo though! Please sign up if you can.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: The Tyler family has stepped up in a big way this season. Once passionate fans on the sidelines, now integral parts to making this league the best in Soccer league in SW Michigan.. Last call, Hail Mary, Prescott touchdown, ayy (yeah) …

An infantry of armyworms is on the march, turning lawns—as well as soccer fields—into battlefields of dead grass.

“They can easily munch their way through whatever, whether it’s a lawn or a park or a golf course,” Eric Rebek, an Oklahoma State University entomologist, tells Christine Fernando of USA Today. “They just lay waste to everything in their path, moving through just like an army on the move.”

Therefore, Lincoln Charter Township will treat the LYSC Fields, Monday, September 13th. To ensure your safety from the spodoptera larvae and the solution used to remove them, we will close the facility. After treatment is applied, we can return to play safely for the afternoon of Tuesday, September 14th.

So, no practices or games on Monday, September 13th. For any questions, let us know.

Jefferson

Well, so much for the smooth flight nonsense I sent last week, we’ve got a little turbulence here. So, as Charisma (aka Coach/Director Brubaker) had communicated on August 20^th, due to the ongoing labor shortage with our vendor, we are STILL waiting for those hard earned, stylish SWM Rec Soccer Uni’s.

Again, we are very very sorry for the inconvenience. We have done everything possible to have them speed up the process, but it is fully out of our hands at the moment. Until jerseys arrive, please continue to wear the uniforms as you have. Thank you again for your patience in this regard. Sincerely.

With that, and how we know how much uniforms mean for pictures this is likely to impact our scheduled photo shoot scheduled September 11^th. As soon as we have confirmation on a postponement, we will let you know.

Now, enough of the turbulence talk to more of the good news I like focus on: Referees, SWM Rec Coach U, Lincoln Charter Township Fire Department Fund Raiser for 9/11.

Referees – As we noted to you in prior communication there’s a massive shortage across all sports for gameday officials. Well, thanks to some of the kind folks in our league and the partnership we have with Lakeshore’s Varsity Soccer Coach and Team, we’ll have our own referee supply. Similar to our friends over at LRF, we’ll looking to include these students in our community to help officiate games. They have my support in calling the games as they see fit and know that our community will welcome them with wide open arms. Check them out HERE.

SWM Rec Coach U – Big shout outs to Lakeshore Varsity Coach Brian Samuel, St. Joseph Junior Varsity Coach Colin Uren, Charisma, Coach Sorensen, Coach Stevens for helping the Coaches we have on staff. Additionally, we have attached the first edition of the Weekly Newsletter for Coaches. Our goal is to provide free  content in future weeks, that will include links to favorite drill, games, warm-ups, etc. We want to provide our Coaching Staff with all the tools necessary help them with process of being a Coach and developing competent, stellar soccer studs.

LCT Fire Department 9/11 Fund Raiser – We are proud supporters of LCT Police and Fire Department and have partnered with both. The Fire Department is putting together a 9/11 remembrance and fundraiser event on 9/11. The department is working to raise money to build a Firefighter Memorial at our local cemetery. They will use LYSC as the location starting at 7:00pm. They plan to sell hotdogs and conclude with a firework display. Please attend if you can.

As always, I love you and couldn’t be more proud of what we have all built together. We’re fastly becoming the Rec Soccer League of choice in SW Michigan, thanks to all of you. For any questions, please reach out.

Jefferson

Lakeshore Varsity Men’s Soccer Senior Night and Youth Night @ the Mark Lehmann Memorial Field @ 6PM

The Lakeshore High School Men’s Soccer Teams are hosting their annual youth soccer night on Thursday, September 23rd at Mark Lehmann Memorial Field. The Lancers will be hosting Mattawan in one JV game beginning at 5:00 PM and one Varsity game beginning at 6:30 PM.

All elementary and middle school aged children who are wearing their own soccer team jerseys will have free entry into the game. Also, your child will have an opportunity to walk on to the field with both of the varsity teams to stand during team introductions and the National Anthem! We will begin lining up near the stairs that lead to the field on the Lancer side at 6:15 PM for this special part of the evening. 

There will be soccer promotional items thrown out at half time of the Varsity game and $1 hotdog coupon given to all Lakehore students. Purchase before halftime of the Varsity game & you will be entered in a drawing to win a Lakeshore Soccer Spirit Wear item.  

We will also be honoring our senior players before the game, so be at the stadium by 6:00 PM to cheer on your Senior Lancers! Please come join us and support your Lakeshore Soccer Programs!

Thank you! 

Dawn Smith 

Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Welcome to the SWM Rec Fall 2021 season, non-stop from August 28th to October 30th. The weather ahead is good and, therefore, we should have a smooth, exciting season. Now sit back and relax. Minus a referee shortage and late uniforms, couldn’t be happier with how things have gone. Just a few highlights to note:

• 2^nd SWM Rec Coach U event is tonight at the LYSC – Picnic Area Under the Trees, 6pm to 7pm. Coaches, if you did not have a chance to attend the one held 8/25, this is your chance to hear other SWM Rec Coaches provide advice, helpful tips, and things to expect this season. Please join us if you missed the first.
• We opened Lakeshore Eats (Concession Stand) for the first time with the help of Krystal Lockman and her Family. If you have a chance to stop by, please do. We expect it to be open Gamedays, though if there is a shortage of Volunteers this may not be possible. So please remember to volunteer if you did not Opt-Out. Remember our Concession Stand is credit card or debit card only.
• To date we have had great Volunteer participation! Best in a long while, much appreciation to all of those who’ve chipped in their time and effort. Keep it Up!
• Despite the delay in uniform delivery, several families have come up with creative solutions to get by and identify their teams. For example, Coach Dimeko Price had homemade jerseys to help identify his team for gameday. Great job Coach!
• We’ve had a few Coaches take advantage of their option to reschedule games to accommodate families and be relieved of the heat! Completely okay and expected. Thank you for exercising your benefit as Head Coach.
• All but 51% of our Teams have registered Assistant Coaches! Excellent! We do still need to have at least one Assistant Coach per Team. For those that do not have one, please get one registered. This is very important, as the success of our league is all dependent on our Coaching Staff.
• Coach Jen Morales has stepped up to lead uniform distribution. As details come about, we will be sure to communicate these to you. Uniform delivery is tentatively scheduled for 9/10.
• Remember to check out and attend our Lakeshore Varsity Soccer and Football games. Any youth player in our league is welcome to join the Soccer Varsity team on the field so long as they wear their SWM Rec Jersey. Home games to attend 9/1, 9/7, 9/16, 9/21, and 9/24. Go root on the Lancers and Coach Brian Samuel and Coach Danny Thompson!

There are a few more highlights that I will mention in the upcoming days, but these were just a few. On another note, we are in desperate need of Referees for our U10, U12, and U14 games. If you know of anyone interested, please forward them to me. Referees will be paid AND we will pay for them to be trained. For more information click HERE.

Finally, if you did not ‘Opt Out’ of volunteering in your registration, you are expected to volunteer your time to help our league prosper. Please look at the Volunteer Schedule to find a service task, date, and time amicable with your schedule and let us know when we can expect you. For if we do not have record of your service to the league and you did not ‘Opt Out’, we will apply the ‘Opt Out’ fee to your registration account by season’s end. For a list of volunteer options, dates, and times click HERE.

For a list of housekeeping items, you may be interested in, see below:

1. Rosters – Coaches, please reference your GotSport account for your current roster and roster contact information by clicking HERE. This is your source of truth.
2. Parking Information – Click HERE.
3. All Coaches – PLEASE Complete your Trainings by clicking HERE.
4. Assistant Coaches – Register HERE.
5. Live Office Hours – Visit our homepage at www.swmrec.com
6. Uniforms Updates – Click HERE.
7. Picture Dates – Click HERE.

Jefferson