Fifty years later, Tony Elia can recall his first 12 months teaching soccer at Saugerties Excessive College prefer it was yesterday.
The modified soccer coach says there aren’t any coincidences in life — there’s a motive for all the things. Mockingly, Elia’s profession path began with an opportunity assembly in 1972 between himself and Pete Kramer, a former trustee for the Saugerties Central College District Board of Training.
On the time, Elia was an skilled younger soccer participant who was working in the direction of incomes his grasp’s diploma in Training from SUNY New Paltz.
Again then Elia was making an attempt to resolve between enjoying soccer or pursuing a profession as an educator. His assembly with Kramer resulted in him deciding to do each — train Social Research whereas creating the primary soccer program at Saugerties Excessive College. For the following 30 years, Elia coached the varsity soccer staff earlier than spending one other 20 years teaching modified soccer. He ended up educating Social Research for 38 years and retired in 2009.
Since beginning his profession in Saugerties, Elia has been instrumental within the growth of a wide range of soccer packages within the space. He was the co-founder and chairman of the Mid-Hudson Youth and Grownup Soccer Leagues, in addition to the Saugerties Youth and Grownup Soccer Leagues.
A lot of Elia’s former gamers have gone on to make soccer their chosen sport post-high college by enjoying in numerous soccer golf equipment, teaching, or by competing in school.
The district held a celebration in honor of Elia’s fiftieth anniversary, inviting household, colleagues and mates to mark his achievement. The district additionally introduced him with a jacket to commemorate the milestone. Elia stated he was speechless and felt choked up. “The joys of this recreation by no means will get previous, and I’ll do it for so long as I can,” he stated about his future as a coach.