BETHEL PARK SOCCER ASSOCIATION

Parents/Coaches Meeting – April 8, 2003

The monthly meeting of the Bethel Park Soccer Association (BPSA) was called to order at 8:30pm in the Council Room of the Bethel Park Municipal Building. The meeting time was changed due to the Bethel Park rally in support of our troops serving our country. Present were Tom Boss, Terry Bove, Richard Chongaway, Bill Harvey, Jack Kun, Dave Porco, Tom Vater, Mark Vescovi, Theresa Vescovi, and Brian Wassel.

Secretary’s Report: The March meeting minutes were approved and submitted to the website.

Treasurer’s Report: Jack Kun advised of a current balance of $12,280.05. Thus far, all spring expenses are in line with the budget. The Association has not yet received a check for registration fees from the Recreation Department. Jack noted that Kurt Veitmeyer’s team purchased matching t-shirts for their travel team (U-18). A motion was made and passed that the players be reimbursed for the cost of their t-shirts.

Coach/Player Development: Twenty coaches attended the coaches’ clinic led by Chris Brown. Many coaches gave favorable comments concerning the program. A majority of the coaches were from Flight 1. This is encouraging as these coaches are the future of the Association. Getting parents involved in coaching from the beginning is a primary goal of this program. Some coaches attending the program requested more information on when and where they could attend a “Y” or “E” licensing course. The Association is looking to host a course here in Bethel Park in September.

Jack Kun, Bill Harvey and others conveyed their positive experiences with David Winsby, our current MLS representative. David is currently coaching the girls and boys U-10 teams once per week and is also present at Flights 1, 2 and 3 at Village Green on Saturdays. If you are coaching a team on any of these flights, please feel free to approach David or any MLS representative to ask questions or to get new ideas for drills. They love to help and hate to stand around so please use their experience to benefit you and your players.

Registration: All went extremely well with the spring registration, both for travel and flights. The new fall registration form will be coming out in May. Once again, Tom Vater will develop a registration reminder which will be distributed to the schools. This proved to be a big help in getting the word out.

PR/Fundraising:. At the invitation from Russ Spicuzza, Bart French of the Riverhounds spoke at the meeting to advise of upcoming Riverhounds activities, promotions and programs. The Association will be hosting a “Bethel Park Day” on Thursday, July 25^th. (This is also “International Night” with special food and games planned!!!) This will not be a fundraiser, but rather an opportunity to join with friends and family to support the Hounds at our very own Bethel Park Stadium. The Riverhounds will produce flyers to promote the day. There will be special games and activities before, during and after the game. This game is scheduled to be televised. The Hounds are looking for two U-10, U-11 or U-12 teams (mix of girls and boys, boys v. boys or girls v. girls) to play on the field before the game and two younger teams at halftime (U-6 or U-8). More information on Bethel Park Day at the Riverhounds will be forthcoming. Both commissioners and travel coaches will hand out flyers during the latter part of May. If anyone is interested in helping to organize or publicize this fun day, please contact any Board member or flight commissioner as soon as possible. This is a great way to become involved in your community!!!

Website: Mark advised that he completed the travel coach’s page on the website. He distributed a handout that detailed the steps necessary to get all team information on the website. Mark asked the Association for one other person to volunteer to be responsible for sending emails to registered members. Bill Harvey agreed and was given directions on how to send mass emails. Bill can use this capability to send mass emails concerning flight cancellations, coaching programs, and other soccer activities.

Mark also asked each Board member to write up a brief description of their job duties in the Association. These will be posted on the website so that people interested in becoming a Board member can see what the responsibilities are of each position.

Equipment: Further discussion was held on which age groups will receive the first sets of new travel uniforms. Since both boys’ and girls’ uniforms will be the same, an entire age group could be purchased. It was suggested that a committee be formed to look at the issue from all directions outside of the regular BPSA meetings.

Flights: Bill Harvey reported a good opening weekend, although the weather caused some uncertainty. Rain and muddy field conditions caused Flight 3 to be cancelled. Bill will call Gary Lefever to get the bathrooms unlocked and water running at Millennium. There was a very good response from parents to the brochure developed by Tom Vater. This was a very positive step toward becoming more in touch with parents and players. Thank you, Tom and Carol, for your hard work in writing, copying and distributing the brochures!

Fields: Brian Wassel advised that he purchased four new nets and put them up at the Millennium and Neil Armstrong fields. Brian published and advised all coaches of the game schedules. Please contact Brian immediately if a cancelled game needs to be rescheduled.

Monthly Meeting: The next Bethel Park Soccer Association meeting will be held at 8:00 PM on May 13, 2003, at the Municipal Building. EVERYONE IS WELCOME AND ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND THE MEETINGS. It is always great to see new faces.