A Message from our Soccer Commissioner:

Carolyn’s blog on our web-site raised four questions which I will answer.

1. Does the trainer, Russell have a contract?
The contract signed by Carolyn is not valid. Carolyn did not present the contract to the Board of Directors, as required, and since she is not an officer of the organization she is not authorized to independently enter into a contract. Also, it would not be in the best interests of the program and the children to attempt to bind us to this contract which is strongly favoring the financial interests of the contractor rather than this program.

2. When I paid the registration fee, was I paying for the trainer?
Paying the registration fee does not guarantee the payment of any specific item. Registration revenue is income to the program and must be budgeted responsibly to pay for required expenses that support the program and then desired expenses as is affordable. Much the same way we budget our income at home. I budget my income to pay mortgage, insurance, food and so on. I would also like to buy a Hummer. If I paid for the Hummer first, I may have a problem paying for the mortgage or other required expenses and I would, rightfully, be considered irresponsible. For anyone to say that any one item is guaranteed by paying the registration fee is a reflection of a complete lack of understanding and grasp of the responsibilities of the commissioner.

3. Did commissioner Carolyn Cook inherit a deficit of $12,000.00?
Soccer did not inherit a deficit in 2008 or in 2007. 2006 left a positive balance in the soccer account of $22,000.00 going into 2007. There was no office assessment charged in 2007. However, soccer, as well as all the other sports in LYSA, was assessed in 2008. The office assessment for 2008 was $12,000.00. That was soccer’s portion of the office cost and it was half what the trainer cost. However, Carolyn chose to not pay that assessment and to pay the trainer instead. The assessment was a responsibility; the trainer was a choice. Just before the fiscal year ended, and as the result of a great deal of pressure, she paid only $2,000.00 of that debt. Therefore, leaving a deficit of $10,000.00 to be carried into the 2009 budget.
Through LYSA, I have been working on a Grant from the Suffolk County Youth Bureau for $8,000.00. That grant would be dispersed, proportionately, to all the sports in LYSA. I asked the Board of Directors, which are the commissioners of the other sports, if they would be willing to waive their portion of the grant and give the whole thing to soccer in order to bail them out. It was voted on and approved. So the deficit that was created by Carolyn’s poor choices will be neutralized due to a "bailout decision", not a loan, by the Executive Board. Those bad guys.

4. Has the cost of the LYSA office had any part in the decisions regarding the trainer?
The cost of the office is spread out among all the registrations in LYSA, not just soccer. On average that is about 2500 players. The cost per registration breaks down to between $11.00 and $14.00 depending on total registrations. That is what the office costs each player. Therefore, if we were to eliminate the office it might reduce registration cost by only $10.00. If that were to happen, everyone would be questioning, "Why such a small reduction?". The answer would have to be, "because you have all been duped".
The cost of the trainer is $22,000.00, but that cost is spread across only the intramural and inter-league registrations. Travel does not pay for the trainer. That means that there were only 350 players to pay the $22,000.00 and that breaks down to $63.00 per player. If anyone were to make a choice as to which expense, the cost of the office or the cost of the trainer, can be attributed to a $40.00 increase in registrations over two years, any reasonable person would have to say that it is the cost of the trainer. The cost of the office and the cost of the trainer have always been two separate concerns and are not related in any way.

It is also seems clear to me that there has been an obvious effort to deceive this membership and deflect your attention from the cost impact of the trainer, and other administrative failures, by attempting to blame everything on the executive board and the LYSA office. The fact is that the LYSA office or the executive board have had no impact on the problems that have developed in the soccer program. Soccer problems are soccer generated. The recovery of this program will be the direct result of the fine people who have volunteered their time and energy and dedicated themselves to be better today than we were yesterday.

Ron Gangitano
LYSA Interim Soccer Commissioner