CiTY Newsletter - May 1, 2020
Dear CiTY Community,

Warm greetings from your CiTY leadership team! We know there are a lot of moving parts and considerations to make on many fronts in our everyday lives right now, so we strive to communicate clearly and consistently to keep our community updated on what's going on here at CiTY.

Click here to watch this week's CiTY Director Address , from Technical Director, Carmen Juliano.

Here's a rundown of what CiTY has been doing and what we have coming up:

New CiTY Website
The next time you head over to www.ellicottcitysc.org , you will notice a brand-new website! We have spent the last few months putting it together with as much relevant information as possible, and hope it will serve as a useful resource for the CiTY community.

Mental Wellness With CiTY - Ianni Training Parent Workshop May 3
"We develop players on and off the field." One of our three core philosophies in action as we bring to the CiTY community a special webinar for parents. This event which is open to our entire club community and made possible by a mental health grant from Horizon Foundation, will "explore the depths of parenting in the world of youth soccer," as we hear from Patrick Ianni (former MLS pro) and Seth Taylor. This will be a memorable event, so you don't want to miss it! RSVP here .
Link:

CiTY Travel
CiTY leadership has held two virtual Town Halls for 2019-20 CiTY Travel and U8 Academy families to provide information and guidance regarding the Spring 2020 season and the plan to move forward into the 2020-21 seasonal year. Beginning yesterday, May 1, current CiTY families in our travel and U8 Academy programs have the opportunity to commit to CiTY in 2020-21 and upon doing so, will receive a Spring Credit as a result of the 2020 spring season being affected by COVID-19. Use this link to set up your account and pay your commitment fee/club dues for 2020-21.
Links:

CiTY Rec
City Spring 2020 Rec has been canceled due to COVID-19. Registered players were offered a full credit to apply to a future CITY program or to CiTY's scholarship fund, or a partial refund. Spring 2020 Rec families should fill out this form to indicate their choice. CiTY leadership will hold a CiTY Rec virtual Town Hall on Thursday, May 7 at 7:00 pm . This is a great opportunity to get information and ask questions about CiTY's vision for Rec and plans to move forward. RSVP to get the link to attend the Town Hall. Questions can be submitted ahead of time via this link . Hope to see you there!
Links:

CiTY Special Needs Program
We plan on holding our CiTY Special Needs clinic if and when we are able to safely get back onto the field. The Special Needs Program has been part of CiTY since our first season in 2014. The program has continued to grow over the seasons and it wouldn’t be successful without the support of our CiTY players, coaches and families. We had over 50 players registered in the fall and more than 100 volunteers at a few of the clinics. Stay tuned for possible dates and information about how to volunteer!

2020 Raffle Winner Announced
Congratulations to the Belchers, a CiTY Original family, on winning CiTY's raffle drawing for $10,000! Through this fundraiser, we raised money for CiTY's Special Needs Clinic, as well as for City's scholarship fund. This fund will be more important than ever to ensure that every player has a chance to play, even in a time of economic uncertainty for many.
The raffle drawing was broadcast live and you can watch the video here.

Off-the-Field Resources for our CiTY Community
CiTY has worked with several individuals and businesses as part of the off-the-field development, which is one of CiTY's core philosophies. These experts continue to be a resource for CiTY families who are interested:
  • Chris Williams - licensed mental health therapist available to address mental health concerns of CiTY players and families, via phone or video chat. [email protected], 443-756-3753
  • www.changingthegameproject.com, founded by CiTY guest speaker, John O'Sullivan - Empowering Parents, Coaches and Youth Sports Organizations to Transform Youth Sports
  • www.soccerparenting.com, founded by CiTY guest speaker, Skye Eddy Bruce - Inspiring Players by Empowering Parents
  • Diamondback Article - story of CiTY guest speaker, Paul Bin's mental health struggles and support from UMD Coach Sasho Cirovsky

Thanks for supporting CiTY, and as always, feel free to reach out to CiTY Leadership with any questions or concerns. 

Tim Ryerson, Executive Director, [email protected]
Rob Ryerson, General Manager, [email protected]
Carmen Juliano, Technical Director, [email protected]
Amanda Buckler, Director of Administration, [email protected]
Wade Whitney, Rec Director, [email protected]
Support CiTY Scholarship Fund every time you shop at Amazon
Until further notice, charitable donations to CiTY via Amazon will support CiTY's Scholarship Fund, which will be more important than ever in the coming seasonal year. Set Ellicott City Soccer Club as your charity and a percentage of your purchase will be donated by Amazon to this cause. Use this link to choose CiTY as your charity.