{"id":1805,"date":"2012-07-31T15:58:37","date_gmt":"2012-07-31T19:58:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/?p=1805"},"modified":"2012-07-31T15:58:37","modified_gmt":"2012-07-31T19:58:37","slug":"retired-soccer-pro-returns-to-his-revered-city-roots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coatesvilletimes.com\/?p=1805","title":{"rendered":"Retired soccer pro returns to his revered city roots"},"content":{"rendered":"

36-year-old J.T. Dorsey thrilled to be running a youth program in Coatesville<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

By Kathleen Brady Shea<\/strong><\/span>, Managing Editor, The Times<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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Former soccer standout J.T. Dorsey encourages fancy footwork as kids return the balls after a workout.<\/p><\/div>\n

Surrounded by dozens of pint-sized whirling dervishes with soccer balls, the organizer of the controlled chaos smiled broadly.<\/p>\n

\u201dShe wouldn\u2019t even touch the ball when we first started,\u201d said J.T. Dorsey, pointing to one girl enthusiastically dribbling it across a parking lot doubling as a practice field.<\/p>\n

Dorsey, 36, a top mid-fielder at Coatesville High and went on to play professional soccer, said when the U.S. Soccer Foundation wanted to expand its youth development program into the Philadelphia area and sought his help, he was happy to oblige \u2013 on one condition.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted the Philadelphia area to include Coatesville,\u201d said Dorsey, who who led his CASH team to the second round of the Class AAA District 1 playoffs. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to bypass my hometown.\u201d<\/p>\n

The J.T. Dorsey Foundation’s \u201cSoccer for Success\u201d program was established in the spring and is now serving 200 children at five regional sites, one of which is in Coatesville.<\/p>\n

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Coatesville Community Police Officer Rodger Ollis, who assists with the program, unfolds a t-shirt that is eagerly awaited by Damari Stephens.<\/p><\/div>\n

As established by the U.S. Soccer Foundation, the grant-funded program uses soccer as a tool to combat childhood obesity, promote healthy lifestyles for children in under-resourced\u00a0urban communities, and provide them with free after-school programming throughout the academic year.<\/p>\n

Dorsey said he reached out to the Coatesville school district to find participants. It connected him with Crystal Lowery, the ebullient recreation director at the Regency Park Apartments, who offered a venue and a partnership that literally hit home for Dorsey.<\/p>\n

\u201cI used to live right there,\u201d he said, pointing to a building across the street from the parking lot as more than 30 children from kindergarten through fifth grade gleefully squealed behind him.<\/p>\n

He said participants play soccer for 90-minutes stretches three times a week under the tutelage of Amy O\u2019Grady, an instructor recommended by Lowery.\u00a0Dorsey said the program uses soccer as a tool to effect social change, providing children with resources ranging from structured activities to role models.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really cool to be able to do this,\u201d said Dorsey, who now lives in Harrisburg. \u201cI can identify with some of the struggles these kids have … I can say, \u2018Hey, I lived in Regency, too.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

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At 6-foot-1, Dorsey, who said he was too short to pursue basketball, possesses star stature for the aspiring soccer players.<\/p><\/div>\n

Dorsey said he relocated to the state capital after he was picked up in 1998 by the Hershey Wildcats, a professional soccer team based in Hershey. He \u00a0ended up staying in that area after he retired in 2006 from the Harrisburg City Islanders.\u00a0 But his heart \u2013 and a host of relatives, including a sister and her three children \u2013 remain in Coatesville.<\/p>\n

Until she died last month, Dorsey\u2019s mother, Robin M. Dorsey, a minister and community activist, also lived in Coatesville. Dorsey said he realized before high school that even though he loved basketball, he was \u201cbetter at soccer,\u201d a decision that got his mother\u2019s unabashed support.<\/p>\n

He said his mother never learned the rules of the game; she was always too busy cheering for him and his teammates. \u201cShe was so encouraging that one guy got upset when he learned she couldn\u2019t be at a game, telling me: \u2018I play so much better when your mom is out there yelling.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Dorsey, who studied elementary and special education at Loyola University, said he knew he eventually wanted to work with children while he was at CASH, where he participated in the Future Teachers Club.<\/p>\n

The idea for the foundation grew out of a torn ACL he sustained in Hershey. \u201cI had never been injured before,\u201d he said. \u201cIt helped me realize I needed to have an exit strategy.\u201d<\/p>\n

After stints in teaching and coaching, Dorsey said the foundation enabled him to \u201cmix education and soccer, putting my two passions together.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u201cSoccer for Success\u201d program is but one component of the foundation, which also has a leadership program inspired by Dorsey\u2019s mother and recently renamed the Robin M. Dorsey Future Leaders Program. Dorsey said he hopes to encourage others to take a similar career path \u2013 from playing soccer to mentoring youngsters.<\/p>\n

Right now, Dorsey spends much time shuttling from Harrisburg to Philadelphia \u2013 and making sure that his Coatesville stops allow time for family visits.<\/p>\n

When he\u2019s in Harrisburg, he is sometimes accompanied to programs by his 4-year-old daughter. Asked if she inherited a soccer gene, he paused and grinned. \u00a0\u201cRight now, she plays by default,\u201d he said. \u201cThe kids let her kick the ball around.\u201d<\/p>\n

A video look at some action from \u201cSoccer for Success\u201d:<\/p>\n