Post on 09-Aug-2020
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
9/1 Fall Soccer Picture Day
RVES
9/19—10/3 Early Bird Winter
Basketball and Cheer Registra-
tion
10/10 Columbus Day—Office
Closed
11/6 Fall Cheer Pep Rally
11/11 Veteran’s Day—Office
Closed
11/19-11/20 HYS All Star Cup
Soccer Tournament
During the last few months, SYC lost two significant contributors to the
organization. George Angulo, a longtime volunteer, board member and
most recently SYC's VP of Operations, and John Betts, who for many
years served as SYC's attorney. Both passed away.
Both George and John added greatly to the club's growth, development
and ability to serve the youth of our community. They both exemplified
some of the best characteristics of a volunteer, which are crucial to an
organization like ours - objectivity, clear thinking, with a highly devel-
oped sense of community and SYC's role in it, and the ability to put the
club's best interest over individual interests. They each enriched the
club, and in turn the lives of thousands of area children, in unique and
important ways.
SYC is honoring George’s memory by issuing and displaying a GA de-
cal on each and every football players’ helmet this season. Look for
the decals on the back of the helmets as our players take the field.
Please take a moment and remember these two people. If you knew
them at all, you knew how much they cared about the club, its mission
and the youth we serve. Even if you didn't know John and George,
please take a moment and appreciate all of our volunteers, without
whom SYC could not exist. I was fortunate to know them both and am
humbled by their service to our club and the community.
PRESIDENT’S CORNER
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Featured Volunteer .................2
Volunteers ...............................3
Top Tips for Athletes ..............3
VYSA Olympic Development
Program ...................................4
Health and Youth Sports ........4
Cheer Highlight .......................5
CHRIS SPERA
The Torch
September 2016 Issue
Springfield/South County Youth Club
7075 Newington Road, Unit G
Lorton, VA 22079 www.sycva.com
SYC HISTORICAL FACT
On May 17, 2007 SYC’s membership voted overwhelmingly to change
the name of the club from Springfield Youth Club to Springfield South
County Youth Club. The name change was in response
to the club’s need to correctly reflect the demographic
areas we serve.
“The most important thing to me is the friends that I’ve made.”
- Bill Russell
SYC: Tell us a little bit about your
background and family.
My wife Simone and I have lived in Spring-
field for about 25 years and have three chil-
dren – Alex 16, Emily 19, and Chelsea 26, all
of whom grew up participating in multiple
SYC sports.
SYC: What got you interested in vol-unteering with SYC?
Sports were a huge part of my life growing up
and I strongly believe they play an important
role in youth development, so I wanted to en-
sure my kids had the same opportunities and
positive experiences that I had. I have been
associated with SYC as a volunteer for 20
years – starting as a rec soccer coach in 1996,
and getting talked into becoming a league di-
rector shortly thereafter. As my daughters
moved on to travel soccer, I turned my atten-
tion to football and basketball, where I have
been ever since. I coached SYC football for 7
years and basketball for 13 years, serving as a
basketball league director for 11 of those, be-
fore becoming deputy commissioner and now
serving as the basketball commissioner. I was
also recently elected to a seat on the SYC
board of directors.
SYC: Do you have a child in the bas-ketball program now?
My youngest is now a junior in high school, so
I no longer have any children playing in SYC,
but he still participates as a basketball refer-
ee. As my kids wrapped up their SYC playing
careers, I stopped coaching and began focus-
ing my time and energy helping with the ad-
ministration and management of the basket-
ball program as the commissioner.
SYC: Why is the SYC basketball pro-gram important to you?
While I love all sports and participated in
many, basketball is very near and dear to me
and is the one that I spent the most time play-
ing (including the hundreds of game-winning
shots I made at the buzzer while playing alone
in my driveway). All three of my kids played
SYC basketball, and it became a part of our
family (and after sitting outside in the cold for
countless soccer, baseball, and football
games, basketball quickly became Simone’s
favorite sport!). With about 1,200 kids, bas-
ketball is SYC’s second largest sport after soc-
cer, and one of the largest basketball organi-
zations in Northern Virginia. We take great
pride in the quality of our program, and I am
proud to be a part of it.
2
FEATURED VOLUNTEER—JEFF REBA
3
SYC has volunteer opportunities throughout the year that can be completed by students. SYC assigns
and verifies volunteer credit for school, scouts, church, court, and other civic organizations. Contact
Nancy Cannon for current opportunities to volunteer.
“There are those who give with joy and that joy is their reward.”
-Kahlil Gibran
THANK YOU VOLUNTEERS!
Top Tips for Athletes Headed Back to School
Sleep. 8-10 hours of sleep each night helps the body recover from the physical and mental challenges of the day.
Eat breakfast. If you are nervous or just don’t have an appetite in the morning to eat breakfast the first weeks of school, take breakfast to go. Cereal in a snack container, a bagel, half a sandwich, or smoothie might be just enough to help you stay focused and give you some energy in the morning.
Eat a healthy variety of foods all day. Try to take advantage of each opportunity to eat breakfast, lunch, snacks before practice, dinner, and maybe even another snack after dinner. Sports and school are demand-ing and require more energy. You’ll have the best chance staying healthy or recovering quickly. Check out https://www.choosemyplate.gov/MyPlate to learn more about food groups.
Stay positive and manage stress. Talk to friends and family about what’s happening in your day. Let your parent, teachers, and coach know if practices and homework have you feeling overscheduled. Ask for help on how to manage time and stress. Use relaxation techniques like deep breathing, meditation, or listen to music.
Stay hydrated. Bring a water bottle to school to sip during the day to help with focus. By paying attention to drinking and eating well each day you’ll show up for competition well hydrated. Reaction time is better when hydrated which helps prevent injury.
Sharon Coleman Staier, MS, RD, CSSD Family and Sports Dietitian playonnutriton@gmail.com
During this summer, the Virginia Youth Soccer Association (VYSA) Olympic Development Program
(ODP) provided open tryouts within 5 districts across the state of Virginia looking for motivated and
talented players with birth years of 2000 – 2005 to join the prestigious program. Springfield-South
County Youth Club (SYC) is designated in the “North” district and had a number of players desiring to
be a part this opportunity.
We extend our congratulation to those players from SYC that were selected amongst 100s of other re-
gional candidates to be a part of the VYSA ODP Program this year. Please be sure to reach out and con-
gratulate these determined and ambitious athletes, as well as those Coaches and Trainers that saw
their potential and motivated them to be better than they thought they could be.
2001 Girls Elena Beasley, Katheryn Weir
2002 Girls
Rachel Mayberry
2003 Girls Savannah Hensley, Madeline Seeling
2003 Boys
Brandon Arias
2004 Boys Luigi Candelaria, Anthony Orellana
For a listing of all those selected for the VYSA ODP Program, please see the following links:
Girls: http://www.vysa.com/docs/odp/DistrictODP/North%20Girls%20District%20Pool.pdf
Boys: http://www.vysa.com/docs/odp/DistrictODP/North%20Boys%20ODP%20District%20Pool.pdf
The U.S. Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program was formed in 1977 to identify a pool of players in each age group from which a National Team will be selected for international competition; to pro-
vide high-level training to benefit and enhance the development of players at all levels; and, through the use of carefully selected and licensed coaches, develop a mechanism for the exchange of ideas and curriculum to improve all levels of coaching.
VYSA OLYMPIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
4
HEALTH AND YOUTH SPORTS
Staying active is an important part of a healthy lifestyle, and youth sports can play an important role in
your child’s health. Read more about how youth sports benefit your child here:
http://www.healthfitnessrevolution.com/top-10-health-benefits-youth-sports/
SYC Cheer has new uniforms!
Our old uniforms were over six years old so it was time to upgrade and give
our cheerleaders a fresh look. Our Rec cheerleaders are starting off the sea-
son in uniforms that emphasize the navy and
orange.
Our All-Star cheerleaders also received new
uniforms. We focused on a uniform that is of
performance/competition quality (similar to
high schools.) They were designed to stand out,
and have a removable liner so they are more
versatile for the year-round season.
A big THANK YOU to Nancy Cannon for supporting SYC Cheer through the
purchasing process, and for finding an organization that we could donate
our old uniforms to. Thank you to the SYC Board for approving our new uni-
forms on short notice. We are already receiving compliments on the new
look!
POLICY REMINDER
Concussion Training is
mandatory for all play-
ers, parents, and volun-
teers. Once you take the
training, it is good for
one database year. You
won’t need to complete it
again until the start of
summer sports registra-
tions.
5
FREE SOCCER MAGNET
If you are new to SYC Soccer
or did not receive a soccer
magnet last spring, just stop
by the SYC office to pick one
up!
Fall Field Hockey Novice
Clinics
Winter Basketball
Winter Cheer
Last Call for Fall Lacrosse
Clinics
REGISTER TODAY!
OPEN REGISTRATIONS
MISSION STATEMENT: Springfield/South County Youth Club provides athletic programs for
boys and girls ages 4 to 19 that promote character development, good sportsmanship, and ex-
emplary behavior. We strive to establish a nurturing and supportive environment which re-
flects, respects, and celebrates our differences, while embracing the richness of diversity within
our membership.
*Your Ad Here*
SYC is seeking Newsletter Sponsors for ½ page ads.
Contact nancycannon@sycva.com
for prices and availability.