Pickering FC
COVID-19 Update
May 1, 2020
Dear PFC Family,
 
Are you hanging in OK? We sincerely hope you are and staying safe too.
 
We’re making regular visits to the Pickering Soccer Centre to ensure it’s safe and sound. Sadly, the view below is getting to be normal right now and definitely NOT what we want to see. We CANNOT WAIT to see our players, coaches, match officials and families in the near future.
Last week we focused heavily on the players as we aligned their activity with our five Club Values. This week we’re going to focus on a CALL TO ACTION with opportunities to keep everyone engaged and connected.
Community
  • The spotlight of COVID-19 fell on the City of Pickering last week as we absorbed the terrible news from Orchard Villa Retirement Home. We know that this tragedy has impacted families within the Club and also the frontline workers who are residents within our community. We are proud of their bravery and service and to show our gratitude Board Member and Coach, Barry Donnelly proposed a Frontline Appreciation Tour so with some quick planning and a test drive we now have a route and schedule for Saturday May 2nd. PFC cars will drive around key locations in the city. Check out the link above for a copy of the route and schedule. If you can join us to show how #PFCProud we are of our frontline workers then we’d love to see you (physical distancing to be maintained). Note that the Pickering Soccer Centre will not be open.

  • Online socials continue for our Walking Soccer group each Friday morning from 10:30am and our All Abilities group will be enjoying some yoga on their session tomorrow morning at 10:30 am. For details on both please contact Tammy at allabilities@pickeringfc.ca

Respect
  • Congratulations to U9 player Ellie who appeared in the local newspaper last week promoting her very own Pet Food, Toy and Supplies Drive. Ellie will be taking collections at the end of her driveway from 12-6pm on Sunday May 3rd. If you are out on Sunday and can show your support, we know Ellie would be grateful. Thank you, Ellie, for making us all #PFCProud.
Excellence
  • Our Technical Staff did it again with another fantastic week of guest speakers from the world of soccer. With our new Cisco WebEx secure platform, we were able to open more Q and A with our junior players.

  • This week we hosted three more fantastic guest speakers who were great examples to our players and staff:
Manny Aparicio
York 9 Team Captain
Anthony Adams
Head Men’s Coach, University of Maryland BC
Liam Fraser
Toronto FC and Canada Men’s National Team
  • Please stay in touch with your Head Coach for access details to each session. We’re taking a proactive approach to keeping our kids safe while they’re online with PFC Staff. Our new PFC Webinar Policy is aimed at protecting our attendees and can be viewed HERE.
Player Centered
  • Our first week of Recreational Virtual Training was a HUGE SUCCESS with over 60 players registered for the sessions. We have space for up to 1000 attendees on each session so please register in advance at the link below. Open to all registered Indoor 2019 and Outdoor 2020 Recreational players. Time and Days in the graphic below.

  • Grassroots players in our Development (U8-U12) program are also getting active with weekly sessions led by Coach Hollie (Tuesdays at 5pm) and Coach Trey (Thursdays at 5pm). Details are available from your Head Coach.
  • Ball Drop Off! We took the chance to drop off four or five balls during the last week to new registered players who hadn’t got a ball to start their practice. If you are new to the Club and need a new ball let us know by email to grassroots@pickeringfc.ca and we’ll get one to you asap. (We follow the Canada Post ‘Knock and Drop’ procedure).

  • Look out for our weekly calendar to help players prepare for the week ahead. We’ll be posting it to Twitter, Facebook and Instagram in the next 24 hours.
Transparency and Integrity
  •  The PFC Board are assessing appropriate directions for program fees and in regular contact with other Clubs in the area. As a not-for-profit organization our money is very closely accounted for and we hope to get member and community support as we work through this situation. As a recap;
  • Indoor Competitive programs that had remaining sessions we hope to complete during the Outdoor season. Head Coaches are being asked to plan accordingly and providing substantial online engagement.
  • Competitive Outdoor season will run and we will assess the cost/deliverables as soon as the picture becomes clearer from our host leagues. 
  • Outdoor Recreational season will run and meet its objectives with some festival type and/or multiple games in a week. The Club hopes to launch a ‘Dollar Down’ registration program and payment plan shortly.
 
  • Ontario Soccer are now seeking input on a Return to Play process and they’re seeking community input. The link can be found HERE and members are encouraged to provide their thoughts. Findings will help inform the provincial soccer strategy and the government sub-committee on sport.
 
This message follows our previous Club messages (March 19 th , 24 th , April 2 nd , 9 th ,17 th and 24 th ). Finally, with hopes of an early July start to our season we encourage you to stay in touch with us. If you have any questions or comments about this message please email: memberservices@pickeringfc.ca with 'COVID Update' in the Subject line.
Stay safe.
 
Matt Greenwood, Executive Director
 
#PFCChallenge or #PFCProud
Pickering Football Club
(905) 831-9803
PickeringFC.ca
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