Soccer Club Receives $4,000 Check From Legislator Swanick

November 9, 2002
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Fred Claus Photo
The Grand Island Soccer Club was the recipient of a check for $4,000 which was presented by Erie County Legislator Charles M. Swanick on Saturday morning, November 9, 2002 at the Sidway School Complex Soccer Field. Receiving the Erie County funded check are Soccer Club President Ray Billica (left center) and Vice President Thomas Armkusewicz. The funding will be used for the rehabilitation of the Field. In attendance for the presentation were soccer players and parents from the various age groups. The $4,000 appropriation will correct the rutted surface, aerate, topdress and overseed the top surface. Completion will create a safer playing surface for the estimated 1200 youths who use these fields.

Soccer Carnival and Clinic
A Soccer Carnival and Clinic will be held from 1:30-4 p.m. Saturday, July 21, 2001, at Veterans Park on fields 1, 2 and 3 along Bedell Road. The clinic is scheduled from 2-3 p.m. The event is sponsored by the Grand Island Soccer Club

Special Thanks
Letter To The Editor

Grand Island Chicks Soccer Teammates (left) Tina Coates, Kim Walker, Jenna Podlucky, Katie Loiselle and Jen Rogan with Coach Peter Kuehne. Click for larger view.
   On Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, I had the privilege to coach five young ladies at a National 3V3 Soccer Tournament in Orlando, Florida. These young ladies, named the GI Chicks, are: Tina Coates, Katie Loiselle, Jenna Podlucky, Jen Rogan and Kim Walker. This is whom I will be talking about. With the bad publicity our children of Grand Island have been receiving lately, it'll be nice to report how these young ladies made us proud to be Islanders.
   What started to be friends entering a local 3V3 soccer tournament, it turned out to be so much more. After winning locally, the next step was the regionals in Hershey, PA. The Chicks placed third, giving them the opportunity to go to the nationals in the Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney World in Orlando, Florda. Understanding that this was going to be a great financial burden, the Chicks reached out to our community for support. They wrote letters to local businesses and various clubs, sold candy bars at Bills' games and conducted a raffle. The overwhelming support received surpassed all expectations.
   This is written to tell you that the support did not go to waste, and we can be very proud how these five young ladies represented Grand Island.
   The Chicks played their hearts out, going undefeated in the first round. Then, unfortunately, we were eliminated in the playoffs.
   Their sportsmanship on and off the field was another outstanding attribute. One example of this is when the teams were waiting for the next game to be played, the Chicks went out of their way to talk to an Under 7 girls team from Tampa, Florida. The team was named the Knights; they were in the recreational divison and hadn't won or even scored a goal.
   The Knights were so excited that the Chicks took interest in them that they came to the Chicks next game to root them on. We also went to watch the Knights, cheering them every scoring opportunity or even if they just crossed the mid field. Their love for the game and just having the opportunity to participate made everyone excited. They were so overwhelmed that the Chicks came to watch their game that they sometimes just stopped on field to hear them cheer. The parents of the Knights were so thankful and appreciative of the Chicks, telling us numerous times how nice and thoughtful our five young ladies were. It made me proud to be associated with this team. It also prompted me to write this letter letting everyone who supported the GI Chicks know that contributions they gave were not wasted. We do have something to be proud of with the youth of Grand Island.
   I would like to personally thank the chicks and their parents for including me in a wonderful experience.
   Thanks again.
Coach Peter Kuehne

GI Chicks - Pride of Grand Island