Sorrento Duncraig JFC's John Sobolewski named 2019 Subiaco District “Optus Volunteer of the Year” Finalist
John Sobolewski has been named as a finalist for the Optus WA Volunteer of the Year and will be representing the Subiaco District in the next phase of the awards. John is currently the President of the Sorrento Duncraig Junior Football Club and has put in an outstanding effort not only this season but over a number of years in a variety of different volunteer roles.
Apart from being President for the past 3 years and a committee volunteer in a number of roles, John has also been a coach at Auskick/Modified level and has also assisted with the Junior Girls teams. Managing the largest community club in the country with over 1000 members, John has worked relentlessly in establishing female football at his club, working with the district and fellow presidents sharing best practice strategies.
John is now working towards establishing an inclusion program for 2020. He supports the district with ground use, advice in regards to female development squad training programs, junior competition by-law change suggestions, coach development within his club and with the support of umpires throughout the Subiaco district.
John is present every Saturday at Auskick, providing a positive image for the youngest members of our club and their parents. John assists the coordinator in preparing for setup for the day and each Sunday he assists with the setup of grounds for Modified & Opens Rules games.
John is also dealing with day to day club issues, helps set up for Sunday games early in the morning, he spends countless hours working on football matters on behalf of the Sorrento Duncraig Junior Football Club.
A normal week outside of balancing work and family responsibilities, will find John doing volunteer work beyond his President and coaching roles. He assists on Friday evenings setting/packing up the ovals for girls games and remaining for the duration, to assist wherever needed. He does this again on Saturday mornings at Auskick. John undertakes these duties to benefit the community. John is running the biggest club in the Subiaco district and managing a significant size club at the level of excellence he does, shows real leadership and passion to achieve and improve.
John has been a fantastic President in the way he advocates for the spirit of game by-laws and practices. In 2018, he led the club to win the champion club award for Subiaco district for best administration, development & game day environment. John is great ambassador for the game of AFL, his club and the Subiaco District, as he continually finds new ways to develop and support not only his own club but the district and region as a whole.
In both his roles as coach and President, John has always been an advocate for the development of the players, the club and the positive image of the game we provide for our players. John is well respected throughout the club and is well known across the Subiaco Junior football club district. He is even tempered, and resolves matters in a fair manner. John upholds the values for junior football in terms of fair play, sportsmanship and modelling correct behavior.
In 2017, John was a driving force in SDJFC having teams in girls’ football and has been instrumental in the club having increased participation in girl’s teams. He demands the highest standard of behaviour, both on and off the field, for everyone involved in Sorrento Duncraig.
John has been invited to to the Sandover Medal Award Night on Monday, September 16th at Optus Stadium alongside Claremont District's Rhys Mola and West Perth District's Claire O'Donnell. He will also join a large list of District Volunteers to be recognised for their work in supporting WA Football on Friday 20th September at the 2019 Metro North Awards of Excellence.