April 2014
The Keeper
Club Night 1
Coach Lam Understands 2
Volunteers Needed 3
Concession Stand Update 4
High School Soccer Ball
Runners Needed 4
PSC Tournament Update 5
Inside this issue:
April 2014
The Keeper
On Tuesday April 16th, the Portage Central Women's Soccer team will be hosting the Kalamazoo Central High School Maroon Giants at Mustang Stadium. This is also Club Night for the Port-age Soccer Club. This means if you are a player in 6th grade or
younger and wear your PSC jersey, then you get in Free. The
Players will get to come in and have a chance to watch the lady Mustangs play on the "Field of Dreams". Please work with your team to arrange as many parents, players and fans to come cheer on your Mustangs and watch some fast paced action packed soc-cer.
Portage Central Soccer Women’s Program Record
1983-2013
Wins Losses Ties
501 113 48
www.PCHSSoccer.org
PAGE 2 THE KEEPER April 2014
Coach Brian Lam Understands……….. If you have read Coach Lam’s bio you know he began playing competi-
tive soccer at the age of 5 and continued throughout high school. He
attended Loy Norrix where he was the only sophomore to make the
varsity team. In his junior year they made it to the Semi-finals of State
and as a senior he was elected captain. He had a standing offer to play
at K-College from (then) coach Hardy Fuchs, but decided to attend
Michigan State to concentrate on academics.
Since high school, he has played on and off in men's leagues, co-ed
leagues, and indoor leagues, both in Kalamazoo and while in Denver.
He follows professional soccer and continues to study the game. Like
many of our volunteers, Coach Lam continues to give of his time out-
side of the soccer community where he volunteered with KRESA
through a program called Guys Read.
What you don’t know is what the players think of him as a coach. He is well liked by the players and
parents. Not just for his soccer knowledge, but the way he can communicate with them. He makes the
game fun while pushing the players to continue and develop their game.
Why is this? Its because he is able to bring his professional life experience full circle and utilize his
skills, knowledge, sense of humor and team building concepts to the players.
One of Brian's passions is improv comedy as part of Kalamazoo’s Crawlspace
Eviction. In 2012, Brian founded a new business venture with Dann Sytsma
to conduct workplace team-building exercises; Improv Effects LLC.
“While humor may be good for workplace morale, Lam and Sytsma said they
aren't there for the laughs. We're not a trip to the circus, but we're not a sit
and watch a three-hour PowerPoint presentation on how to be a better lis-
tener," said Sytsma, who said the idea is to get a team to a point where they
can adopt a "group-mind" approach where everyone can build on one an-
other's ideas. "It's not just showing up and making your employees laugh for a
couple of hours."
"It's a lot of fun, but we don't get hired as the entertainment," agreed Lam, owner of Lam Creative Solu-
tions, who studied at Chicago's storied Second City. "If someone wants that, I encourage them to call
Dann's other business." The workshops are designed to build camaraderie.
"The skills learned and techniques taught are invaluable - and they're done in such a
fun way. During our session, it truly was not long before everyone jumped right into
the exercises and released any nerves they may have had at the start," said Alison
Satkoski, who participated with the Southwest Michigan First Ignite Group.
So why is he successful, Brian incorporates this philosophy with the teams he coaches
knowing a team that trusts and plays together bonds and can go further allowing for
better development than a team that plays as individuals.
Ever wonder why our complex is so beautifully
maintained compared to many of the other fields
you have been to?
The simple reason is because of how great all our
volunteers are. We have always had a group of
incredible individuals who maintain the facility
by mowing and doing general maintenance.
Volunteers Needed .
PAGE 3 THE KEEPER APRIL 2014
They are looking for a couple of people to help with mowing the practice fields. They would need to
come out once or twice a week and spend a few hours using the riding mowers to mow our practice
fields. The schedule is wide open and it’s actually quite relaxing!
Mowers Needed
Sewing Help Needed
Some of our flags have started to tear and get worn. We are
looking for someone who is handy with a sewing machine.
Flags are an important part of the game and we save a lot of
money over time by making them ourselves.
Torn and worn flags can give the complex a different look and
feel. Help us maintain that fresh pristine image we and other
visiting clubs have come to expect when playing at the Port-
age Soccer Complex.
If you are interested in either mowing or making flags, or just want
to learn a little bit more please feel free to contact Vern Genisio.
[email protected] 269.375.8521
PAGE 4 THE KEEPER April 2014
Unfortunately, we were unable to find someone to
take over as Concession Manager from Sean Bowser. As a result, with the exception of the tournament,
the concession stand will not be open this season.
We are still seeking an individual to step into this
volunteer role and take over for the Fall season. The responsibilities include working with AYSO on ordering supplies, and scheduling of PSC teams. If you are interested
please feel free to contact Sean at 321-0201 or via email at [email protected].
Concessions Update
High School Ball Runners Needed
Contact Steve Abdo at 269.544.2680 or via email at [email protected]
PSC Coach Steve Abdo, who has two daughters playing Varsity at PCHS is looking for
players who are interested in ball running at games. This can be a lot of fun and you get to see the action up close. For those girls who are getting close to high school age,
you get a chance to see and meet some of the players you may be sharing the field with
one day.
Ball runners get in free and they also get a Pop and food item free. The games we are
looking for help with are:
Wednesday April 16th 5pm & 6:45pm vs. Kalamazoo Central (PSC Club Night)
Saturday April 19th 11am & 1pm vs. Holt
Friday April 25th 5pm & 6:45pm vs. Plainwell (AYSO Club Night)
Wednesday April 30th 5pm & 6:45pm vs. Stevensville (Kingdom Club Night)
Monday May 5th 5pm & 6:45pm vs. Portage Northern (Senior Night)
Saturday May 10th 10:15am & 1245pm JV 2 for 1
PAGE 5 April 2014
As many of you know the Portage Classic Soccer Tournament falls on the second full
weekend of June. This is a required event for all PSC teams as it’s our primary fund-raiser. Since we are an all-volunteer organization this money goes back into the general
account to pay for the upkeep of the facilities. This is how PSC is the least expense club
in the area and has one of the top facilities in the state.
Each year we require families to vol-unteer four hours per player of their
time during the tournament. This can be broken up into either one four hour shift or two, two hour
shifts. The volunteer coordinator will do everything possible to sched-
ule around their children’s games. This commitment is crucial in a smooth running operation and con-
tinued success of the tournament.
This year, for the first time since 2008, the tournament will fall on Father’s Day week-end. We felt it was an important reminder so families can make plans accordingly. The Portage Classic can be a great place to celebrate Dad’s day with good food, family, friends
and great soccer.
All PSC teams will be required to register their teams (check-in) for the Tournament on Thurs-
day, June 12th at Soccer-Zone.
Now that we are doing scheduling locally we will be closing the application period earlier to give team’s greater notice of game and parent volun-
teer schedules.
When your coach/manager registers your team,
they will need to submit the Portage Classic tournament roster based on the specific
team’s official roster. Any other players, despite club affiliation, who are not on that spe-
cific team roster are considered “Guest Players”. Guest players allowed in each division
are as follows:
Three in the U9&U10 divisions,
Four in the U11 & U12 divisions
Five in the U13 and above divisions.
PSC Tournament Updates
Portage Soccer Club Board
President David Rice
Treasurer Tom Mellinger
Secretary Kim Maystead
VP Coaches Wayne Harpenau
Director of Technical Vu Le
VP Communications Ken Pope
VP Concessions Open
VP Fundraising Open
VP Uniforms Jay Hoffman
Club Registrar Dana Pope
Parent Representatives Chad Earles, Janet Ingersoll & Lisa Hall
Fields’ Manager Gordon Groves
Tournament Directors David Rice & Ken Pope
Web Master Ken Pope
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