Thank You Ames Varsity Hockey- As your Coach Stands Down

Tonight- On March 10th 2013 the Ames Little Cyclone Hockey program honored it's 2012-2013 Team at our annual awards banquet. For me it was the final banquet as the head high school hockey coach in Ames, as I announced my resignation before the state tournament in February, and it is effective Sunday night at midnight. So this banquet was my last official event as the head coach, and it was an emotional night for me.

I always look forward to our banquets, they are a chance to honor the accomplishments of the players, celebrate the positives from the year, thank our staff and volunteers for the tirless effort they provide and to send our seniors off into the next stage of their lives with a great event. Tonight I was not looking forward to the banquet for my own personal selfish reasons. For me it was a good-bye, for me it was the end of something special. In most cases I would say that it was one of the hardest days or nights in my proffesional life, but when you consider that since I have been in this job we have laid to rest the parent of a player, the younger brother of two players, and the wife of an assistant coach, (not to mention numerous grandparents of players past and present) we have obviously delt with much worse than saying good bye at an awards banquet. But it is those bonds, and those trials mixed with all the other highs and lows that I have been so fortunate to share with so many great players, staff, and people. That made tonight so hard as I walked away.

Six years ago our staff had a vision, it was to build a family and a program based on character, class and integrity and giving back. It was required that we be champions in all four phases of our program, on the ice, off the ice, in the class room, and in the community, and it required that everyone had to care about each other, more than themselves. After six years, we did not accomplish all of it, but we accomplished a lot of it, and I'm here to say thank you for making it happen. Our program was about so much more than hockey, it was and always will be about life and it has been an awesome ride! On the ice we had double digit win totals in four of our 6 years, and finally in 2011-2012 made it to the State tournament. This year and in one previous year we finished one win away from qualifying. So while we did not meet all our goals on the ice, and certainly expected more, I have never seen a more dedicated group of players, coaches and staff. Those special moments on the ice everyday, in the locker room or in the staff meeting rooms will always be cherished. Off the ice I can't thank the players enough for there dedication in the weight room, and in the off season program. I hope that the dedication you have given me continues for your new leader. In the class room is where I'm the most proud. Every year almost 2/3rds of our team has earned the Midwest High School Hockey League Academic Award, for GPA's above a 3.0, every year we have had at least one senior win the President's Academic Award for a 3.5 Cumulative GPA's over their entire high school career, and every year when we give out our Team Award for Best Academic Performance/Highest GPA there are multiple players that receive it and the winners always have 4.0 GPA's. Sunday night we handed out 17 All Academic Awards, 4 President's Academic Awards, and 7 Best Academic Performance/4.0 GPA Awards. A testiment to the quality of the kids in our program and to their dedication to the title of " student athlete".

In the community our student athletes are required every year to help coach and mentor the kids in our learn to skate program, but our roster is full of kids in every class that are volunteers in religious, political, community action, and social services programs. When I write letters of recommendation for them I'm amazed by all they do in the community and it makes me so proud and humbled to say I know them. They are champions in all they do.

In these past six years this program has become a family- and our student athletes and our staff and all our parents have bought into our "Family Creed". It is special and it is something that we hope to pass on to alums that came before us, and most certainly to all those who will come after us. There have been 73 players that have come through our program in the six years I have been the head coach, and I hope that most would say they are better when they leave us for the last time! Although I know we did not always get through to everyone. If I named all 73 players this blog would go on for days, so I will just say this. Those players know who they are, they know that I love them and that is what really matters. This year's team that we sent off tonight includes: Seniors, Mark Wishman, Spencer Oh, Jake Dedic, Izzack Bloch, Paul Fritzell, Danny Schmidt, Orion Boylston, and Casey Inman, Juniors: Ben McGee, Tomas Lence, Jake Thoren, Ian Kolb and Jesse Gamble. Sophomores, Grant Koehler, Forrest Oh, Spencer Dedic, Payton Boylston, Reed Bowman, Austin Lemper, Sam Gorden, and Luke Lenhart. Freshmen, Noah Goebel, Ithica Jones, Dawson Perrin, Drew Smith, Gunder Howe, Toby Linder, Madi Schweikert, and Grant Waline. To all the players, past, and present that I have coached, and to all the alums of the program, thank you- it has been so special to be a part of this family.

To our current staff- Associate Head Coach Brett Linder, Director Of Hockey Operations Doug Lenhart, our assistant coaches Geoff Will, Marc Rogers, Curvin Larson and Jake Scebold, and our game day and adminsitrative staff, Matt Koehler, Jarod Lemper and Pat Gorden. To current athletic trainers, Pete Harder, Cassie Franklin and Kayla Kleihauer you guys are the greatest high school staff anyone could hope for, and your work and your dedication have made our program go.

To former assistant coaches Rob Beck, and Josh Westbrook, and former Athletic trainer Josh Miley. Your contributions made this program better in every way and I can't thank you enough.

To former staff members, Todd Scebold, Matt Rensch Jay Weber, and Steve Jones, who were here in the begining- you helped build and then solidify our foundation and I thank you, it was lots of work that has not been forgotten.

To Doc Shuleman- thank you for all your work in educating our players and staff on concussion re-search and for always helping and advising us, especially me in anyway you could.

To Ames High School Athletic Director Judge Johnson- thank you so much for allowing me to run the program with the vision I had, and treating our program with so much dignity, it has been a pleasure and honor to work with you.

To my predecessor Russ Moore- your advise and council has always helped and been appreciated, there is no better sounding board than someone who has sat in your seat before. I was blessed to have you around and another former head coach of our program on our staff. I'm forever grateful for your help.

To current Ames Minor Hockey President Rachel Linder, VP Stacy Woodward, and past Presidents Jason Berg, Matt Goodwin and Tom Moorman, and to all of the members of the Ames Minor Hockey Board past and present. Thank you for helping and facilitating myself and our staff with the ability and resources to foster a culture and build a program in a vision that we felt could benefit the high school program and all the youth hockey programs. It has been an honor to work beside all of you.

To the current Ames Minor Hockey Youth coaches, you are the foundation for our program- your lessons and your dedication build our future Little Cyclones, your work can be so hard and demanding, and I thank you for your commitment.

To the founders and members of our Blueline Club- Gary Hunziker, Scott Elston, Mike Owen, Jeff Larson(Lifetime Membership Award Winner) Ryan Kinhart, Russ Moore, Andrew Murdoch, Todd Scebold, Brian Wierson and Jake Scebold- your support of the program and willingness to help is so appreciated and I hope that myself and all of us can continue to support the new head coach.

To our current parents and past parents- the program works because of you and your support of me and this staff has been unbelievable. My gratitude for you will never end and I hope you know that.

To all those that I have come to know and work with, especially the rink staff led by Amanda Moore and Chris Barkima, the Iowa State hockey program led by Dr, Al Murdoch, and his staff and all of those people that have supported Ames Hockey in our community, whether it is as sponsors, fans, or students, thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting our program and helping us in the ways that you could.

To my extended family- my parents, my step parents, my sister, my step sisters, and step brother, my father and mother in law, and my brothers in law, along with all my aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews, my step grand parents and my grand parents who we have laid to rest. You have all played a huge part in my life, and had such a big influence on me as a grew up, and now continue to influence me in many ways no matter how much I see you. I thank you for your love and support, no matter what I do. I love you.

Lastly to my family, my wife Jennifer, and daughters Samantha and Kamryn- thank you for your love and support on this hockey journey, I'm grateful to all of you, you have made many sacrifices, they have not gone unnoticed or un appreciated, and I will always be grateful. I love you.

Tonight on March 10th 2013- the 2012-2013 Ames Little Cyclones Hockey Team celebrated their season and their seniors. They also gave their coach a send off that was more humbling than I could have ever imagined. I was just doing my job, these past 6 years trying to make a difference. In the end it was really all of you and those I mentioned above that made the difference. I learned more from you than you could have ever learned from me and I will cherish it forever. I did not tender my resignation because I don't want to coach. It is what I love to do I have done it for 13 years, and it is in my blood, but sometimes you have to do what is right in stead of doing what you want. I will coach again someday, but for now I will be in the background working on special projects and being a fan. No matter where I end up, or no matter what I'm doing this place will always be special, this program will always be special, and I will always bleed a little black and orange.

Tonight we didn't just celebrate a season, we celebrated a program, we celebrated "Quinn's Quest" and Amy and all those that have passed before us; we celebrated the future, but most importantly we celebrated a family, and I'm so grateful to have been just a small part of it.

Thank you

Coach Schmale