The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
New rec director focuses on working together
Aims to establish ties between youth programs and Perry High School coaches, athletes
It didn’t take Mike Smith long to find a new full-time job after he retired following 33 ½ years as high school teacher.
Perhaps it’s also not surprising that his new job involves sports. After all, he coached a variety of them throughout his entire teaching career, the bulk of which was spent at Madison High School.
Smith, who lives in Madison Township, began working Aug. 1 as the new director of the Perry Area Joint Recreation District. Although his position as administrator differs in many ways from that of a coach, Smith explained that there are a couple of common goals: to build successful programs and provide a good environment for young athletes.
“The bottom line is you’re in it for the kids,” he said. “You want them to have a great experience — have fun, learn a little bit about the sports, and of course, keep playing them throughout their careers. Sports teaches them so much — about respect, sportsmanship and how to act and behave, and being a good winner and a good loser.”
As head of recreation district, Smith oversees youth sports programs and leagues that take place year round: volleyball and soccer in the fall; basketball during the winter; and baseball and softball throughout spring and summer.
Although his coaching
“The bottom line is you’re in it for the kids,” he said. “You want them to have a great experience — have fun, learn a little bit about the sports, and of course, keep playing them throughout their careers.” — Mike Smith, director of Perry Area Joint Recreation District
career has focused on guiding the fortunes of high school teams, he believes he’ll also be successful in planning and carrying out programs for younger athletes.
“I think one of the big things I bring to the table for youth sports is the fact that I’ve seen the other side,” Smith said. “I want to bring that tie to Perry where I get the head coaches (at the high school) involved. That way, the youth coaches are doing things that the head coaches would like to see (the young players) working on,”
In addition, Smith hopes to have high school varsity players serve as some of the district’s counselors, or come to referee games.
Rick Amos, chairman of the district’s board, likes the fact that Smith wants to revitalize the partnership
between the recreation program and Perry High School.
“We feel like with the rec program, one of the things we’ve lost is the tie to the school system,” Amos said. “Back years ago when I used to coach, we had a lot of support from the high school and the coaches there, where we felt like we were the minor league for the high school, where we kind of did things the way the coaches wanted it done. We got help from the coaches kind of looking over our shoulder and giving us ideas. And we also got support from the athletes.”
The recreation board on June 6 hired Smith as fulltime rec director and David Whittaker as part-time assistant rec director.
Smith replaced David Sarosy, who resigned earlier in
2018 to become Willoughby’s program coordinator of parks and recreation.
Although Smith was hired in June, he couldn’t begin working as Perry rec director until Aug. 1 because of a state law that requires public employees to wait two months after their retirement date to return to public employment, if they want to retain retirement benefits for that two-month period.
Fortunately for Smith, Whittaker helped to lay the foundation for a smooth transition.
“He was able to start in June and July when I wasn’t, and I was able to come in and hit the ground running,” Smith said.
Whittaker, a Perry Township resident, had once served as full-time recreation supervisor for the city of Painesville. Prior to
that, he worked as the city’s full-time recreation coordinator.
“So Dave brings the other side to it that I don’t, and that is experience with youth sports,” Smith said. “Dave’s been a wonderful help.”
When Smith interviewed for the Perry recreation director opening, he informed the board that he planned to continue holding his position as Madison High School varsity girls basketball coach. Smith also said he was aware that Whittaker interviewed for the rec director position. At that point, the longtime coach came up with a game plan of sorts that he shared with the recreation board.
“I suggested to the Perry Rec Board that they hire us both, with me taking a little less money as director and giving them the ability to use that money try to bring on an assistant,” Smith said. “They were able to work it out so they were able to hire Dave and I. That way in the winters, when I’m full fledged into basketball, we’ll have Dave here to cover any evening things that I might have to miss because of my schedule.”
Amos said the team of Smith and Whittaker should prove to be a winning combination for Perry Rec.
“Mike, obviously, having a 30-year career not only as a teacher but also as a coach in multiple sports, having run many camps and worked with kids a lot, is really a perfect fit,” Amos said. “He’s a hard worker, and a get-your-hands-dirty kind of guy.
“David comes with years and years of experience at Painesville Rec ... and he’s got experience in grants and fundraising that will be crucial to us.”
For Smith, retirement has been anything but leisurely since starting his new job.
“I’m here all day, every day, but loving it,” he said.