League Announcements

Ladies and Gentlemen kick off is less than 24 hours away! All of our planning, preparation, practice, effort, communication, leads up to this. Tomorrow is why we do, what we do. Like my Director of Coach Development says, these games are for YOU. Remember to keep our events fun, lest we fall to the bowels of dread with over competitiveness, chair throwing, kicking the dirt, screaming, etc. Yes, I am sure some of you who know me, are thinking that that SWM Rec guy named Jefferson is one of the most overly competitive ones out there ‘who is he kidding?’. This is true; however, I’ve learned to channel that drive to a level that is slightly below the level of ridiculousness.

Remember, that we ALL are on the same team out there. Please have fun and let me know how it goes. My hope is that tomorrow is ever bit as victorious for our league as it was for our Lancer Football team last night against Portage Central. Seeing those golden rainbows thrown by Korfmacher Jr. almost brought a tear to my eye, oh so similar to how the ball flies through the air at the Palace on the Prairie. Congrats to Lakeshore and Coach Danny Thompson on a stupendous first game. Can’t wait for the next!

See below for a list of housekeeping items you may have an interest in:

1. Lakeshore Eats Training (Concession Stand) – To be on Friday, August 27^th, 6pm to 7pm, at the LYSC – Concession Stand.
2. Rosters – Coaches, please reference your GotSport account for your current roster and roster contact information by clicking HERE. This is your source of truth, NOT, excel sheets previously distributed.
3. Parking Information – Click HERE.
4. All Coaches – Complete your Trainings by clicking HERE.
5. Assistant Coaches – Register HERE.
6. Weather Policy – Click HERE.
7. Home and Away Colors – Click HERE.
8. Gameday Schedule – Click HERE.
9. Gameday Format – Click HERE.
10. Practice Field Reservations – Click HERE.
11. Skipping this number for obvious reasons.
12. Live Office Hours – Visit our homepage at www.swmrec.com
13.  
14. Uniforms Updates – Click HERE.
15. Volunteers Duty – Please remember to check our volunteer task list for the dates you are responsible to attend. Please click HERE for the schedule.
16. Picture Dates – Click HERE.

I love you.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: Mr. Charisma ‘Ryan Brubaker’ volunteered his time, without prompt or request and took the initiative to line fields this week. In the blazing heat I might add. It was not his volunteer task, item to address, not his Coaching responsibility, or any of that. He just did it! Words cannot express the appreciation we have for his contribution. Please tell him thank you when you see him. #selfless#humble#inspiring

Happy Hump Day to all of you. Opening day for this Fall season is only three days away. With that, I wanted to take a moment to recognize those folks who have decided to make SWM Rec Soccer a league of their own. Please click HERE for those who have helped lead our organization into what it is and what it will be.

We have been very fortunate to have several come forward to serve each of you, free of charge, to provide you with a unique fall soccer experience. With all of the hustle and bustle we forget sometimes that every coach and league administrator has volunteered their time for free, and that they too have lives of their own to pay mind to.

Please keep this in mind, when making demands and or requests. We appreciate your patience in this regard and firmly believe you will enjoy your experience with us. Please see below for a list of housekeeping items you may want more information on:

1. Weather Policy – For information pertaining to Cancellations, Heat Advisories, etc., please refer to the following link on our website by clicking HERE.
2. Home and Away Colors – Red is for home teams; Black is for away teams. Click HERE.
3. Official Training (Game Referees AND Coaches) – To be held on Wednesday, August 25^th, at the LYSC – Picnic Area Under the Trees, 6pm to 7pm. This is for those volunteers that have been assigned the task of Gameday Official Duty. This is also available for anyone who would like to learn more about the rules of play. Coaches and parents are welcome to attend. WE ARE IN NEED OF OFFICIALS SO IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO VOLUNTEER FOR THIS TASK, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.
4. Lakeshore Eats Training (Concession Stand) – To be on Friday, August 27^th, 6pm to 7pm, at the LYSC – Concession Stand. This is for those volunteers that have been assigned the volunteer task of Concession Stand this season. Please attend for a demonstration of our new point of sale system.
5. Parking – As you can tell our new parking lot has been completed and we have made special arrangements to ensure our folks with handicap parking needs have been accommodated. For more information about the approved areas for parking, you can do this by clicking HERE.
6. Opening Day – Kicks Off, August 28^th, at the LYSC, 12pm. You can view your game schedule by clicking HERE.
7. Gameday Format – For game length for each age group this can be found by clicking HERE.
8. Rosters – All roster moves and requests have been processed and should be reflected within GotSport. Please reference your GotSport account for your current roster and roster contact information by clicking HERE.
9. Parents – All Coaches should have reached out to their teams and introduced themselves by now, if they haven’t please let me know.
10. Assistant Coaches – Remember, that we are asking for a family member from each team to come forward to volunteer as an Assistant Coach, if one has not already done so. Please register by clicking HERE.
11. All Coaches – Coaches, please remember to complete your trainings. You can find instructions on how to do this by clicking HERE.
12. Practice – Reserve your Practice Field today by clicking HERE.
13. Skipping this number for obvious reasons.
14. Office Hours – Remember that we have live Office Hours this week. These are intended for anyone with questions, where they’d like to speak with someone, or have a hand with whatever question they may have. Anything from GotSport, Volunteering, Teams, etc. In the event no one joins we will end the session after 15 minutes. The times are:
    1. Coaches Only Office Hours, Thursday, August 26^th, 8pm to 9pm, via Google Meet (Button on our Homepage will take you to the meeting) or by clicking HERE.
    2. Tuesday, August 31^st, 8pm to 9pm, via Google Meet (Button on our Homepage will take you to the meeting) or by clicking HERE.
15. Uniforms – Scheduled for delivery September 10^th. As updates from our vendor come in, we will post to you all.
16. Volunteers – Please remember to check our volunteer task list for the dates you are responsible to attend. Please click HERE for the schedule.
17. Pictures – Are scheduled for September 11^th and 12^th. Times will be communicated to you shortly and posted on our website at www.swmrec.com.

I love you all. Please send me anything you would like mentioned in our next fall season announcement.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: Coaches Jennifer Morales and Jennifer Sorensen took advantage of our new Office Hours and had answered questions they’d had. They also took the opportunity to make suggestions to help improve the league we have. Each are on deck to impart their wisdom to our community in our SWM Rec Coach U training scheduled for September 2^nd. Excellent job ladies!!!

Good day to you all, the first game is only 5 days away and I wanted to send you a few reminders about the events this week. They are as follows:

1. Rosters – All roster moves and requests have been processed and should be reflected within GotSport. The trade deadline has passed Coaches. Please reference your GotSport account for your current roster and roster contact information by clicking HERE.
2. Parents – All Coaches should have reached out to their teams and introduced themselves by now, if they haven’t please let me know.
3. Assistant Coaches – Remember, that we are asking for a family member from each team to come forward to volunteer as an Assistant Coach, if one has not already done so. Please register by clicking HERE.
4. All Coaches – Coaches, please remember to complete your trainings. You can find instructions on how to do this by clicking HERE.
5. Practice – Several teams have taken advantage of our newly added pre-season practice time and we encourage other teams to take advantage if you have not had the opportunity. Reserve your Practice Field today by clicking HERE.
6. Office Hours – Remember that we have live Office Hours this week. These are intended for anyone with questions, where they’d like to speak with someone, or have a hand with whatever question they may have. Anything from GotSport, Volunteering, Teams, etc. The times are:
   1. Tuesday, August 24^th, 8pm to 9pm, via Google Meet (Button on our Homepage will take you to the meeting)
   1. Coaches Only Office Hours, Thursday, August 26^th, 8pm to 9pm, via Google Meet (Button on our Homepage will take you to the meeting)
7. Official Training (Game Referees) – To be held on Wednesday, August 25^th, at the LYSC – Picnic Area Under the Trees, 6pm to 7pm. This is for those volunteers that have been assigned the task of Gameday Official Duty. This is also available for anyone who would like to learn more about the rules of play. Coaches and parents are welcome to attend.
8. Lakeshore Eats Training (Concession Stand) – To be on Friday, August 27^th, 6pm to 7pm, at the LYSC – Concession Stand. This is for those volunteers that have been assigned the volunteer task of Concession Stand this season. Please attend for a demonstration of our new point of sale system.
9. Opening Day – Kicks Off, August 28^th, at the LYSC, 12pm. You can view your game schedule by clicking HERE.
10. Gameday Format – For game length for each age group this can be found by clicking HERE.
11. Parking – As you can tell our new parking lot has been completed and we have made special arrangements to ensure our folks with handicap parking needs have been accommodated. For more information about the approved areas for parking, you can do this by clicking HERE.
12. Uniforms – Scheduled for delivery September 10^th. As updates from our vendor come in, we will post to you all.
13. Skipping this number for obvious reasons.
14. Volunteers – Please remember to check our volunteer task list for the dates you are responsible to attend. Please click HERE for the schedule.
15. Pictures – Are scheduled for September 11^th and 12^th. Times will be communicated to you shortly and posted on our website at www.swmrec.com.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten to mention something here, so please send me a note and I’ll remember it for the next announcement. Remember too, that all of this information is available and posted to our website at www.swmrec.com, prior to dissemination to you in email. Please check frequently for any updates or questions you might have.

As always, I love you and welcome any email inquiries you might have.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: Coaches and SWM Rec Coach Alum provided a training at our first SWM Rec Coach U event last Wednesday. BIG SHOUT out to Douglas DeCamp, Brittany Dunham, Daniel Crowder, Jake Pschigoda, Jasmine Van Dusen, Ryan Brubaker, Jon Punches, and Mark Stevens, and the 30 or so folks in attendance. Our Coaching family above provided content on their Coaching prowesses and the coaching wizardry they thought were important for other Coaches to consider. Phenomenal job Coaches!!!

Hey SWM Rec Family,   It’s hard to believe we officially kick off the fall season in just a few days! We are beyond excited for an incredible season with you all. But first, we wanted to give you updates on two important events:   

1. Jersey Pickups
2. Picture Day

Jersey Pickups: The jersey pickup that was scheduled for tomorrow is CANCELLED! Unfortunately, due to labor shortages in the production company, our jerseys will not be ready until the first week of September. We will notify you of the rescheduled pickup date for the jerseys as soon as we are told the exact date that they will be ready. We are terribly sorry for the inconvenience. We have done everything possible to have them speed up the process, but it is fully out of our hands. Until the jerseys arrive, players can wear either a red or black t-shirts, or their previous season’s SWM Rec jerseys. The coaches will let you know which color you are for each game. Thank you all for demonstrating such great patience! We will get those to you as soon as possible.  

Picture Day: Picture day is scheduled for September 11th. As of right now, the exact times have not been worked out with Capture Studios, but go ahead and mark that date on your calendar! Your coach will notify your team of which color to wear for the team pictures.

Ryan and Lisha Brubaker

Thanks to all of those who were able to attend last night’s Office Hours. We were able to walk through questions ranging from Age Groups, GotSport, Coaching Contacts, Teams, Schedules, and more. Our next Office Hour is exclusively for Coaches and it will be this Thursday from 8pm to 9pm. Coaches, please join us if you can.

Remember that tonight is the first of two SWM Rec Coach U Clinics, 6pm to 7pm, at the Lakeshore Youth Soccer Complex Concession Stand.

These will be hosted by SWM Rec Soccer Coaching Alum:

• Director of Coaching Development DeCamp (Introduction to Rec Soccer) – 10min
• Coach Van Dusen (Games) – 15min
• Coach Punches (Practices) – 15min
• Coach Crowder (Field Strategy and Fundamentals) – 15min
• Coach Brubaker (Communication and Leadership) – 15min

This is geared for all Coaches in SWM Rec. It is required that each Coach attend at least one of the two SWM Rec Coach U events. The second SWM Rec Soccer Coach U event is scheduled for September 2^nd, 6pm to 7pm at the Lakeshore Youth Soccer Complex. Please choose one to  attend and bring with you paper, pen, and a copy of the MSYSA Rules, Regulations, and Policies (available by clicking HERE).

This will allow for us to introduce ourselves and get reacquainted with those who coached in the spring. This will also provide an introduction to our league from a Coaching standpoint and for those new to our league, an opportunity to ask questions.

Anything from how many practices to have for your respective age groups, suggested drills, game-days, strategy, team communication, etc. COACHES are the MOST important position in our league therefore we are offering this to you free of charge, in addition to the online materials already communicated to you.

Remember, that we do still need each team to have a family volunteer to step up and fill-in as an Assistant Coach. If teams have not already lined one up, please do so soon. The Head Coaches job is a task, and each will need a hand with practice, communication, schedules, players, parents, etc. Please register as a Coach by clicking HERE.

Jefferson

Fall Season Highlight: Coach Jason Sweet stepped up to the call this fall to Coach and has registered, completed all necessary training requirements, reached out to his team, and scheduled practices. Well on his way to a dominant fall season. Way to get it done Coach!

Hello there, hope you are well and were able to enjoy the incredible weather this weekend. Goodness was it gorgeous outside. We’re looking forward to seeing all of you this season. We see that a number of our Coaches have reached out to their players, scheduled practices, completed some or all of their trainings, etc. Excellent work!

A number of you have reached out about questions regarding the upcoming season. Given that time is the precious commodity in short supply these days, we are scheduling SWM Rec Office Hours for you to call in and ask the questions you have and there we will answer them.

We’ll have two per week and will adjust based on the attendance we have and the perceivable need. We’ll have one exclusively for Coaches to call into and one for the general population. Please attend if you’d like. Coaches are welcome to attend both.

We’ll post a link, on our website with the Google Meeting Information. Please click this Google Meeting link found on our website to attend this week’s meetings. This appears to be the fastest way to respond to all of the questions you have, versus waiting for an email response from us.

For email, we’ll get to these as fast as we can, just know it may be a bit slower given our tasks for ramping up the Fall 2021 season. Also, I’ve been monitoring those who’ve signed up to Assistant Coach since my last communication and would like to thank all of those who have since signed up. We still need more, and I think, we, as a community we can do better.

Again, we are requesting to have at least one family member from each team to volunteer as an Assistant Coach. The Head Coach’s job is the most important position within our organization and will need at least one of you to lend a hand. Please register by clicking HERE.

With that, have a good close to your weekend. Hope to see you on!

Jefferson

Tip: Earlier I’d mentioned other sports and cross-training opportunities here in the area. Others you might look into as well, that I am very familiar with, are Lakeshore’s Youth Baseball and Softball Association, Lakeshore’s Youth Wrestling Program, and The Modern Day Knights Football League. All are excellent programs run by excellent community members. I am good friends with the folks that run those programs too and encourage you to look into them. Again, some of the best you’ll find anywhere.

With the first pick of the Fall 2021 SWM Rec Draft the Crowder Commodores select … Jonah Crowder, Forward, from SWM Rec Soccer.

Happy Friday the 13^th, hope all of you are well and looking forward to the upcoming fall season. We are working diligently to ensure you have a great fall season experience. Rosters have been assigned within GotSport and you should be able to view who your Coach is. Some Coaches are working to complete their registration, so if it is not visible now, it will be as soon as our Coaches complete their registration.

They have been given the green-light to reach out to all of you. Please expect to hear from them via email, soon. With that, we kindly ask and need one of the parents from each team to join their Coach as an Assistant Coach this season. The Head Coaches job is an incredibly fun task, but they do need an Assistant from one of the parents to fill-in, help with practice, communication, etc.

Please register as an Assistant Coach by clicking HERE.

For any roster requests, please coordinate those through your Head Coach. Preferences were noted in your registration and these were taken into consideration when assembling teams. All roster decisions will be made by our Coaching Staff and if they approve, then the request maybe granted. Any roster changes must be made by the August 21^st. After that date, the rosters are set for the season.

For important season dates and questions, please refer to our website by clicking HERE. Gameday schedules will be released tentatively August 15^th. As you can imagine, we are working very hard to provide you a great experience. If by chance we are not able to respond immediately to your inquiries we do apologize, we will do our best to respond as time allows.

Finally, I wanted to give a big shout out to those of you who came out and joined us for SWM Rec Cup Week(end). We had several volunteers show up, including some of our Coaching Staff that helped make the event possible. We will take what we learn from this year and work to improve the event for next spring. Special thanks to those volunteers who were there for the entire day (in no particular order): Ryan Brubaker, Daniel Crowder, Brittany Dunham, Jake Pschigoda, and Mark Stevens. Please thank them for their selfless service.

Jefferson

Tip: If you are looking for ways to improve your kiddos athleticism and soccer skills, you may consider enrolling them in other sports. This works great for cross-training and helps develop other aspects of their soccer game. For example, you might do ‘Try Hockey for Free’ up the street at the Garden Ice Arena. AJ Glowacki provides this option often throughout the year. You may also look into Lakeshore Rocket Football with options that range from Flag Football to Tackle Football. Either way, we support all things youth sports in our area. We are lucky to have the excellent programs we have. Check them out!

Thank you to everyone that joined us for ‘Meet the League Night’. Had several in attendance and appreciated the questions that were asked. Hopefully, all questions were answered. Anything that did come up is available on our website at www.swmrec.com.

Tomorrow is our Fall Season SWM Rec Cup Week. To ensure you receive the value you were hoping to receive from our league, you and your player’s attendance is recommended but not required. The event will be held at the Lakeshore Youth Soccer Complex.

Players and Coaches will check-in at the Concession Stand and then head to their assigned colored placard: Red, Green, Yellow, Blue, White. Coaches and Players need only attend their specified time slot. Players will participate in the drills and our Coaching Staff will perform the evaluations for the Players in their division. Please have your player come prepared to play soccer (cleats, shinguards, water bottle).

• 12PM to 1250PM (U3/U4/U5/U6 Players and U3/U4/U5/U6 Coaches)
  • 40 Time (Red – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with A through E)
  • Ball Control (Green – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with F – J)
  • Passing (Yellow – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with K – O)
  • Shooting (Blue – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with P – T)
  • Scrimmage (White – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with U – Z)

• 1PM to 150PM (U7/U8 Players and U7/U8 Coaches)
  • 40 Time (Red – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with A through E)
  • Ball Control (Green – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with F – J)
  • Passing (Yellow – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with K – O)
  • Shooting (Blue – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with P – T)
  • Scrimmage (White – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with U – Z)

• 2PM to 250PM (U9/U10 Players and U9/U10 Coaches)
  • 40 Time (Red – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with A through E)
  • Ball Control (Green – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with F – J)
  • Passing (Yellow – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with K – O)
  • Shooting (Blue – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with P – T)
  • Scrimmage (White – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with U – Z)

• 3PM to 350PM (U11/U12 Players and U11/U12 Coaches)
  • 40 Time (Red – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with A through E)
  • Ball Control (Green – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with F – J)
  • Passing (Yellow – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with K – O)
  • Shooting (Blue – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with P – T)
  • Scrimmage (White – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with U – Z)

• 4PM to 450PM (U13/U14 Players and U13/U14 Coaches)
  • 40 Time (Red – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with A through E)
  • Ball Control (Green – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with F – J)
  • Passing (Yellow – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with K – O)
  • Shooting (Blue – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with P – T)
  • Scrimmage (White – Players and Coaches Last Names Starting with U – Z)

NOTE: Parking is to be made on the gravel only. However, if you do have an official handicap mirror placard, handicap parking is reserved for you and will be indicated via a handicap parking sign. Lincoln Charter Township Police will be on hand to assist with traffic management, crowd management, and parking enforcement.

We have a great day in store for you and hope you enjoy. We’ll see you out there.

Jefferson

Thank you to all of you who have reached out. Very glad to hear from you. Looking forward to this upcoming fall season. Wanted to send a note to all of you based on the questions i’d received.

1. For a timeline of important season dates please click HERE
2. Games will be held Tuesday and Thursday evenings 530PM or thereafter and Saturday afternoons 1PM or thereafter
3. Practice will be scheduled at the discretion of your Coach
4. Coaches will be assigned on or around August 8th, along with this season’s game schedule
5. We do need Coaches at the present time. Several have expressed interest but have not completed the Coach Registration. Therefore, there is still room for you to join our Coaching Staff if you would like. If everyone that expressed interest in Coaching in their kiddo’s registration, then I would expect there to be a wait-list. Please register soon to ensure you get this opportunity by clicking HERE

The season is shaping up to another great one. Several improvements have been made and will continue to be made. Again, thank you for joining us. Big shout out to the Lakeshore Soccer Boosters, Coach Brian Samuel, the Varo Family, the Hughes Family, the Powell Family, the Nelson Family, and the C. Wilson Family for their service to SWM Rec. They participated in the initial field lining yesterday and we ALL are very appreciative of their contribution.

Jefferson

Spring Season Spotlight: One of the best benefits to Coaching is the opportunity to Coach extraordinary talent. Chase and Brady Jacobs joined SWM Rec in the Spring and had standout seasons. For those of you who do not know them, they are phenomenal wrestlers: Chase is ranked 2nd Nationally and Brady 1st Nationally. SWM Rec is fortunate to have them in our league, and this demonstrates the caliber of athletes that come through the league we have. If soccer is not your primary sport of interest, it does provide excellent cross-training that go to help in other sports as well. According to their parents, Mike and Emily Jacobs, they enjoyed the camaraderie, competition, and teamwork this season. Thank you for joining us Jacobs! Keep up the great work!

Thank You for Registering!

Thank you to all of you whom have registered for the fall. We look forward to having you all. The season looks to be as good, if not better, than what we had in the spring. As with the spring, we will need a strong, confident coaching staff for all those who have signed up.

Please, if you have not already done so, register as a Coach by completing the improved, simple registration form by clicking HERE or by following the URL below:

For those of you who joined us in the spring, reimbursement checks for Coach Trainings have been made to you, that you should be receiving shortly (ETA 7/24).

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate in reaching out to jefferson@swmrec.com or vp@swmrec.com for assistance. We’d be happy to assist.

Jefferson

Spring Season Spotlight: Coach Brubaker and Team Power Force joined SWM in the spring and provided one of the best team experiences one could provide. Just to name a few of the highlights, his team created a custom graphic logo, had weekly player/parent scrimmages, attended an MLS Chicago Fire game, and capped it off with a player award night at the beach. Incredible incredible experiences few get to experience. Coach Brubaker, Team Power Force … You are a great example of why SWM Rec is the best youth soccer league in SW MI!!! Thank you!!!