The Mercer Island Boys & Girls Club celebrated it’s volunteer coaches in June, thanking them for all of their hard work during the seasons.

Over 70 over the 325 volunteer coaches attended the event on Mercer island.

The Boys & Girls Club runs 25 athletic programs each year with over 2,000 students participating, many of them in multiple activities. Volunteer coaches are a critical part of the program, and they invest a significant amount of time in training, planning, practices, games, tournaments and more.

A few of the many Island coaches were honored for noteworthy performances this past year. The Rookie Coaches award went to Kim and Joe Alex for their work coaching baseball this year. The Love of Coaching award went to Quinn Christofferson, Marcus Vizzutti and Eric Stevens for baseball. The Coaching Excellence award went to Dominique Davis for work with the junior tackle football program, while the Unsung Hero award went to Rich Buchan for his work in wrestling, football and baseball. The Most Inspirational Coach award went to Steve Mattox for his work coaching wrestling and baseball. Mattox will have his name added to the Most Inspiration Coach banner which hangs in the Boys & Girls Club field house.

“I have the best job,” said Becky Shaddle, the athletics director for the Club. ” I get to work with all these great people who give so much to our kids.   It’s rewarding to have an opportunity to thank them.  Our Club Athletics goals next year are to continue to improve the quality of our existing programs and to grow athletic opportunities for girls.  Having inspired coaches will enable us to deliver better and better outcomes for our community.”

The event was hosted by Leslie and Kurt Dammeier, and volunteers for the event included: Lisa and Dan Nordale, Heidi Bergland, Susie and Steve Stenberg, Matt Williams, Becky Shaddle, Scott Barbara and Glenn McCrary.