2013 June 'State of the Club'

 

Dear HappyFeet and Legend Families,

I want to thank you for making this a great year for the Legends organization.  We have seen great growth in all our programs as we constantly look to improve our service to you.  This could not have happen though without your hard work and dedication.  Thank you to the coaches, assistants, mangers, and parents who have worked with us to provide the best experience we can for our children. 

Our Future Legends and Junior Legends program had over 600 kids playing on our fields this past year.   What a great experience, as a director, to walk out on the fields at the Soccerplex and Cloyes Parks and see a sea of kids in their uniforms running around and having a great time playing the best game in the world while their parents and grandparents are cheering them on.  That for me as a coach, and a parent of three boys who all played youth soccer, is what it is all about.

I want also to thank you for your patience and flexibility in dealing with the 21 rain out dates we suffered through this year.  My hat off to our Recreation Director, Donald Nobert, who did an unbelievable job first setting the schedule and then seamlessly dealing with all the reschedules.

Our HappyFeet program also reached new heights as we had over 140 little ones dribbling, shooting, scoring, falling, laughing and learning to celebrate.  What a great program with great kids.  This is where it all begins.  Amazing to watch these Little Toes come into our program learn and play, and then watch them graduate to the Future Legends league.  I always joke, that you can tell the HappyFeet kids in the U6 division because they get the ball and go to goal!

Our Legends competitive teams are also making strides.  A slow steady growth that puts emphasis on training and skill development over just results.  The Legends like to win as much as anybody but we do not sacrifice skill development for an ugly win.  There is so much more to this game than just winning and losing.  How they learn, what they learn, how they grow and adapt to an ever changing and demanding game is most important.  We have been blessed by good coaches who are dedicated to your child’s development and not their resume.  As a coach and director, I am extremely proud of our coaches and their passion for the game and your kids.  Our philosophy and motto is, “Bigger is not better, better is better.”  Our aim is to always be better by making your child better along the way.

Regarding coaches, we had 11 current competitive players start to work on their coaching licenses receiving the USSF Youth Module Certificate in February.  In addition, several parents started on their path, obtaining either the USSF Youth Coaching Module or USSF 'E' Coaching Certificates as well.

We have been blessed to be able to bless others.  The Legends have started a TopSoccer Program to provide the soccer experience for those who are shutout from the mainstream athletic experience.  We have also had an impact in Mexico, Ethiopia and Jamaica as the Legends have provided uniforms, jerseys and balls to orphanages and their kids who love soccer as well as support to LeBonheur, Wounded Warriors and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

We have come a long way in two years but we are far from finished.  Our goal is to make each year better than the last.  I and the rest of the Legend staff are looking forward to the new Fall season and hope you are too.

Chris Bartels and the Legends/ HappyFeet Staff