Village of Hawthorn Woods Builds Community Strength through Soccer Program

In the Fall of 2015, the Village of Hawthorn Woods teamed up with Hawthorn Woods Elite Soccer to offer a soccer program that was based on players having fun and building skills in the game of soccer in a non-competitive environment. The goal was simple, build a love for the game of soccer at a young age. What everyone got was just that and more. The time spent out on the field is rewarding for the soccer players, their parents, and even the coaches.

The Hawthorn Woods youth recreation soccer program is run by coaches and players of the Hawthorn Woods Elite Soccer Club, which is owned and directed by Coach Tom Chmela. Coach Tom, a Hawthorn Woods resident, is a soccer enthusiast with over 38 years of professional experience including teaching adaptive physical education, honors programs, leadership and developmental learning at Evanston High School. Coach Tom is vibrant and dynamic on the field. He brings an energy to the program that families love. Katie Parchert, a parent of a player in the program, states, “Coach Tom uses his years of teaching experience to put on a great soccer program. He relates well to kids of all ages and combines skill and game play to make the hour a fun learning experience.”

This unique partnership between the Village of Hawthorn Woods and Hawthorn Woods Elite Soccer Club allows parents to be supportive of their players and they watch and cheer from the sidelines. There are no teams, and no score, just a love of the game of soccer. Steve Riess, a Hawthorn Woods Village Trustee, enjoys coming to the field to cheer on his grandson. “Tom Chmela is the perfect coach for my grandson. He keeps it interesting, he keeps it relevant, and he keeps the kids’ attention and focus on practice and the game of soccer. Having coached soccer myself for seven years and a referee for two years after that, I know how hard that is. I love that we have this program right here is our community back yard.”

Bess Beyer enrolled her newly adopted son into the program. She states, “My son had just moved here from China when he started playing soccer with Coach Tom. My son didn’t speak a word of English, but Coach Tom was so accommodating that it didn’t even matter. He made it fun and educational regardless of the language barrier. Now my son counts down the days until soccer every single week. It’s his favorite thing about moving to the United States!”

Hawthorn Woods started this program in the fall of 2015. What originally started as a fall and spring program now has grown to a year-round program. In 2017 Hawthorn Woods added a winter indoor session held at Kits Sports Center, and a one-week summer camp. Registration is currently open for the spring 2017 outdoor session. Players will meet out on the field starting on April 19th. Players in grades first through sixth practice on Wednesdays and play games on Saturdays. Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten players have the option to play only on Saturday, or both Wednesday and Saturday. The outdoor sessions are held at Heritage Oaks Park off of Fairfield Road in Hawthorn Woods. More information about registering for Hawthorn Woods youth soccer program can be found at wwww.vhw.org/YouthSoccer.