SDSC is thrilled to be able to recognize these individuals as our Above and Beyond Award recipients for the 2020-21 season.

Although we aren’t able to gather and celebrate them at a club-wide event this year, we wanted to continue this annual award and ensure we thank those who do more than is asked of them because of their dedication to the club and their passion for providing excellent soccer programming to our kids.

These individuals were nominated by our coaches, managers, staff and families. The award is named after Terri Moran who exemplifies the diligence and love that so many put into their roles at SDSC. We are grateful for all of these special people!

READ WHAT THOSE WHO NOMINATED THESE INDIVIDUALS HAD TO SAY ABOUT THEM:

Dina Soliman
Dina has been spearheading the documentation of COVID-19 cases and protocol for SDSC in 2020. It has been a critical and monumental task and she handles each case with thoughtfulness, compassion and clarity. This is a task no one at SDSC had ever planned to take on and she has added it to her additional responsibilities of Secretary on the Board of Directors, Team Manager and Parent! She's really stepped up to help us through this year!

Will Lemkul
Will is always available to lend his expertise to the SDSC Board. His input and guidance have been invaluable to the organization. He adds the club needs into a crazy, demanding work schedule. He is always ready to jump in to assist our non-profit organization and we couldn't be more grateful.

Liz Taylor
“Liz is an absolute rockstar! She’s willing to help out however she can, whether it’s a helping hand for all of the families or keeping me (coach) in line.” Liz is a manager that is always on top of the many detailed duties of a manager. At one point in her managing career she was taking care of SDSC business while going in for a C-section! That is dedication!

Rachel Kass
Rachel has been a fantastic team manager this year during a very difficult time. In addition to all the coordination and logistics, she dealt with the personal and sensitive issues relative to COVID restrictions and the team. She is a very thorough and diligent manager. She is very responsive to any requests and works hard for her teams, asking questions and being proactive to organize and keep her team informed.

Paul Guggar
Paul has always dedicated an enormous amount of time organizing our team practices and game/tournament schedules. But since the pandemic started, he has really gone above and beyond his "normal duties." There has been a lot of confusion about the soccer season and team spirit was declining due to all the restrictions and the unknown. However, Paul did not let this hinder his spirit or determination to keep the team practicing and engaged. He has kept team spirit high (when we were all at a low due to Covid19) and encouraged team unity. Our team would not be the same without Paul. He has truly gone above and beyond this season!

Mark Sidebottom
Mark has worked overtime this year working with our facilities to secure the increase in field space required during COVID-19. He's been the interface between club and facilities to understand the protocols and necessary safety plans required. He has done it all with a thoughtful, positive attitude with a priority of safety for our players.

Modesto Guariniello
Modesto always has positive attitude and an understanding of individual family situations in order to help our kids. Modesto motivates players to always try their best. He is a great mentor and is always at practice before start time and willing to practice and take the boys to tournaments even when he is so busy and even throughout chemo when his health is not at its best. I have nothing to say but that he is the best coach we have ever had. With Coach Modesto, each player has not only grown as a soccer player, but as a person. He has helped them build character, and has taught them to never give up. We will always be thankful to Coach Modesto!!

Marino Garcia
Coach Marino is the perfect definition of the Above and Beyond Award. Marino is an extremely humble and respectful individual that makes himself available at any time to do whatever is needed for the club. He is one of the most loyal and dedicated coaches at SDSC. Marino has taken care of all club needs from setting up and lining fields, to equipment set up, tryouts, 3v3 and more and is very well liked and respected by his players, teams and the coaching staff.

Christine Drummond
Christine has been an amazing, positive influence on the girls through this year of change. Her coaching skills speak for themselves but more importantly, we’re proud and grateful to have her as a role model. She is creative in the way she has been able to coach through the restrictions and her ability to communicate and build relationships with the girls are amazing. She is someone the girls can look up to because of the way she carries herself which is what we all want in a coach.

Chris Talbott
We were very hesitant in sending our son out to practice during the pandemic as our son has asthma and a heart arrythmia that would further be complicated should he have been exposed to the Coronavirus. He would wear a mask when he did attend practice and even though we didn't go often, Chris never pressured us to go or made our son feel uncomfortable while he was there. Chris was very strict about the kids not huddling together and making sure they stayed distant throughout the practice, which was another thing that put us at ease. Our son never felt like an outcast, even though he would be the only one wearing a mask and often standing 5-10 feet away from the group. As the kids started playing more game-like drills, Chris was able to have our son as the centerpiece of the drill, creating a type of zone where the ball can go into him, but no other teammates would "attack" and he would be able to pass the ball out or shoot from his zone in the center of the field that Chris had created for him. I could tell my son was smiling through his mask as he felt like he was part of the team and contributing. We couldn't have asked for a better person/coach to instruct our son.

Mike Nicholson
Coach Nico was a big part of the transition into the new world of COVID for the older boys players. He consistently provided zoom trainings when kids were first being stuck on a screen all day for school and not being able to be on the fields. He offered his zooms to all the older boys, not just his teams. I think the boys must have done 10s of thousands of burpees and push ups to keep in shape physically and mentally while they had to stay home. And Coach Nico did every one of those burpees with them!

Andy Bolin
Andy is an amazing coach and goes out of his way to be interactive and enjoy the game with us. Andy went above and beyond with Zoom trainings to keep our players engaged when we were shutdown for the pandemic. This year has been crazy and not once has Andy doubted his players. He always puts in 110% into our practices and finds time for us. He has never given up and always makes the players feel special. And he is a great and funny coach!

Our 2019-20 Above and Beyond Award recipients included the following individuals. Many of them were nominated again in 2020 for their ongoing contributions to the success of our club. So thank you once again to these people!