Longtime Federal Way High School teacher and coach Bill Harris was inducted into the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association’s (WIAA) Hall of Fame Wednesday. The induction ceremonies took place at the WIAA’s headquarters in Renton.
Harris was joined in the 2009 Hall of Fame Class by baseball standout John Olerud (Interlake High School, 1987), basketball star Lisa Raschkow Johnson (Auburn, 1983), longtime Lynden Christian girls basketball coach Curt DeHaan, debate coach and longtime football official Mike Burton, administrator Alli Bennett and longtime official Dick Eglet.
Harris began his teaching career at Federal Way High School where he taught math.
He started as an assistant coach in track and field in 1963 and became the head coach for track and field and cross country in 1965. During his time at FWHS, he won six girls track league championships, 10 girls cross country championships, two track and field state team championships and has coached athletes with 12 individual state championship records.
In 1996, Harris retired from teaching, and from 1997-99, he served as the athletic director at Federal Way High School. In addition, he has and continues to be the West Central District III co-manager for the combination 3A-4A track meet, which includes well over 800 participants.
His dedication and contribution to the sport of track has not gone unrecognized by the West Central District III Executive Board, which honored him and his wife, Kathy, with the Meritorious Service Award in 2002.
In 2007, he was inducted into the Washington State Track and Field Hall of Fame, and in 2008, he was inducted into the Federal Way School District Hall of Fame.
• The Federal Way United Soccer Club is holding an informational meeting for families with players in the under-11 bracket (players born between Aug. 1, 1999 and July 31, 2000). This meeting will cover soccer opportunities for players and the registration process. The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Sacajawea Middle School cafeteria on April 22. Formation of teams will begin in May.
For more information, contact Jammie Hair, FWU Director of Competition, at hairball15@msn.com or call (253) 529-7774.
• The Federal Way School District will host its annual district track and field qualifying meets on April 18 and April 25 at Federal Way Memorial Stadium.
The top-four finishers in each event at both meets will advance to the Track and Field Championship Meet on May 16.
The meets will feature elementary school boys and girls in third, fourth and fifth grades. Events will include the softball toss, long jump, 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters, 800 meters, mile run and relay. The meets will begin at 8:30 a.m.
Participants hail from 27 schools around Federal Way.
This is the 38th year of the Elementary School Track and Field season in Federal Way. The program serves over 2,000 students at no cost and provides a healthy outlet for students to participate in outside physical activity, according to the district. The program has the most participants of any athletic event in Federal Way.
• The Federal Way E-Gal Dance team will host a Dance Showcase at 6 p.m. April 24 inside the Federal Way High School gym. The event is $2 for students with ASB cards and $5 without and tickets are available at the door.
For more information, contact Pat Adkins at (253) 945-5519.
• Federal Way United Soccer and Rob Walker, Director of Coaching, are proud to announce select tryouts for the 2009-2010 boys and girls soccer seasons. The tryouts will take place May 4 through May 12 at Celebration Park and Steel Lake Park. The tryouts will be for players 11 to 17 years old.
The club’s vision is to inspire and encourage involvement in soccer and develop players who become life-long participants of the game.
Federal Way Soccer has a rich history of tradition and a coaching staff comprised of U.S. Soccer licensed individuals with several having coached professionally in the elite youth and college levels of the game.
The Storm and Reign play against the best teams in Washington and offer quality fields for practice and games.
For additional information on the exact times of tryouts and tryout registration, go to www.federalwaysoccer.com
• The Federal Way School District is currently seeking nominations for the second Federal Way Athletic Hall of Fame class to honor past employees who have made a major impact on the district’s athletic programs. Nominees will be evaluated based on serving the district for a minimum of 10 years, has been retired for at least five years or deceased or have made a significant impact on the district’s or a school’s athletic program.
The Hall of Fame inductees will be honored at a regular-season basketball game in the winter of 2009-10.
Each Hall of Fame member will receive a plaque and have his or her name inscribed on a special banner placed at Federal Way Memorial Field. The name of nominee(s) and a brief description of how they meet the criteria should be sent to: Greg Flynn, Federal Way Memorial Field, 1300 S. 308th St., Federal Way, 98003.
Nominations can also be faxed to (253) 945-5577 or e-mail gflynn@fwps.org.
The deadline for nominations must be received by May 1.
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