Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I don’t get about this storyis why would JC go through the trouble of altering some contract for a SUMMER game for freaking U9??? Was the contract used to get rid of one kid? Did more than one kid get punished for this alleged violation? Or are you saying he said you can’t do this it’s in the contract so the kids did not play and so they are suing? Why in the world would BSC care about this age group playing a summer tournament. I have never heard about them or any club caring about that ever, much less at such a young age. I don’t get what JC gets out of this??

That’s the million dollar question. And yes he flat out said can’t play. A group tried to register a team for the summer. Like BSC owns them; just seems like a worldview of how dare “our” talent play soccer under any name/jersey other than Bethesda. He refused to bend and produced the altered contract as supposedly what they agreed to a year ago. It’s comically illegal and unenforceable, but like an earlier poster said, these people running soccer clubs aren’t exactly savvy lawyers or businessmen.

All this for 7 year olds playing summer soccer. Some 501(c)(3) …. suppress rather than promote little kiddies playing soccer. BSC offers nothing free or included over the summer. It just ends unless you’re old enough to give them $700-$800 for super y starting u10.

Not exactly true. BSC offers one week of summer camp free to current players. You can pick any week. I have no argument with anything else you said.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I don’t get about this storyis why would JC go through the trouble of altering some contract for a SUMMER game for freaking U9??? Was the contract used to get rid of one kid? Did more than one kid get punished for this alleged violation? Or are you saying he said you can’t do this it’s in the contract so the kids did not play and so they are suing? Why in the world would BSC care about this age group playing a summer tournament. I have never heard about them or any club caring about that ever, much less at such a young age. I don’t get what JC gets out of this??

That’s the million dollar question. And yes he flat out said can’t play. A group tried to register a team for the summer. Like BSC owns them; just seems like a worldview of how dare “our” talent play soccer under any name/jersey other than Bethesda. He refused to bend and produced the altered contract as supposedly what they agreed to a year ago. It’s comically illegal and unenforceable, but like an earlier poster said, these people running soccer clubs aren’t exactly savvy lawyers or businessmen.

All this for 7 year olds playing summer soccer. Some 501(c)(3) …. suppress rather than promote little kiddies playing soccer. BSC offers nothing free or included over the summer. It just ends unless you’re old enough to give them $700-$800 for super y starting u10.

It's a show of power to demonstrate early on in the process who is in control of these kids - now and in the future.

Anonymous wrote:What I don’t get about this storyis why would JC go through the trouble of altering some contract for a SUMMER game for freaking U9??? Was the contract used to get rid of one kid? Did more than one kid get punished for this alleged violation? Or are you saying he said you can’t do this it’s in the contract so the kids did not play and so they are suing? Why in the world would BSC care about this age group playing a summer tournament. I have never heard about them or any club caring about that ever, much less at such a young age. I don’t get what JC gets out of this??

That’s the million dollar question. And yes he flat out said can’t play. A group tried to register a team for the summer. Like BSC owns them; just seems like a worldview of how dare “our” talent play soccer under any name/jersey other than Bethesda. He refused to bend and produced the altered contract as supposedly what they agreed to a year ago. It’s comically illegal and unenforceable, but like an earlier poster said, these people running soccer clubs aren’t exactly savvy lawyers or businessmen.

All this for 7 year olds playing summer soccer. Some 501(c)(3) …. suppress rather than promote little kiddies playing soccer. BSC offers nothing free or included over the summer. It just ends unless you’re old enough to give them $700-$800 for super y starting u10.

Anonymous wrote:What I don’t get about this storyis why would JC go through the trouble of altering some contract for a SUMMER game for freaking U9??? Was the contract used to get rid of one kid? Did more than one kid get punished for this alleged violation? Or are you saying he said you can’t do this it’s in the contract so the kids did not play and so they are suing? Why in the world would BSC care about this age group playing a summer tournament. I have never heard about them or any club caring about that ever, much less at such a young age. I don’t get what JC gets out of this??

It's very strange. Doesn't he coach his kid in this age group?

What I don’t get about this storyis why would JC go through the trouble of altering some contract for a SUMMER game for freaking U9??? Was the contract used to get rid of one kid? Did more than one kid get punished for this alleged violation? Or are you saying he said you can’t do this it’s in the contract so the kids did not play and so they are suing? Why in the world would BSC care about this age group playing a summer tournament. I have never heard about them or any club caring about that ever, much less at such a young age. I don’t get what JC gets out of this??

Does anyone know if the Board responded to the Cease and Desist letter and what the response was?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If/when BSC parents and/or coaching staff can’t counter BSC abusive or authoritarian issues, their modus operandi is to divert attention, blame weak-minded parent/players and/or get the thread deleted.

Not a BSC parent but the original intent of this post was to bash the club. Insert any other club name and same would be true. If the OP truly cared, s/he wouldn’t be on DCUM they would be writing the BoD. But alas, they came on here to bash - period.

The OP doesn’t seem to care enough to try to fix the club. They say they are leaving and they are venting on the way out. Nothing wrong with that, as much as BSC may not like it.

And then people who do want to try to improve the club and seem to know about steps others have taken to do so starting posting some really interesting things. Why would any rational person have a problem with that? It’s ridiculous to keep repeating the tired “find a new club” line. I’m sure close to 100% of the families at Bethesda would instead rather stay at the convenient club in their local community and see the many management problems at the club taken care of.

Also, what rational argument is there for having no transparency or reporting from the Board?

Why would a parent think they have a role in the management of a club? You are a consumer, you can choose to buy or not to buy. Lots of Commanders fans (this one included) hated how Snyder ran the team, but their recourse was limited to voting with their wallet. BSC is a nonprofit which is a different context, but unless there is something in its governing documents that gives parents a role in its management (I admittedly have not looked), your choice is to stay or to leave. Accept it and move on, you and the rest of us who are happy with what the club provides for our kids will all be happier.

Why wouldn’t a parent think they should have a role in the management of a not-for-profit organization that serves their community and which is funded by their payments and to which they volunteer their time? Usually several of the BSC board members are parents, and for some 503(c)s, the membership elects the board. Thats clearly not the case at BSC, but their bylaws could be amended to allow for more parent involvement. At the bare minimum, the club should invite the community to attend meetings periodically, and there is zero excuse for not posting minutes.

None of those suggestions should make a parent who is happy at the club any less happy, and I’m not sure why any parent would want to sweep allegations under the rug or try to stifle reasonable voices of dissent. Healthy non-for-profits welcome transparency and community interaction.

Give you a voice beyond DCUM? I’ll pass.

Will there be more options in MoCo for MLS Next? If more clubs can offer it, then parents and kids can truly have the option to go elsewhere. Talented, hard working kids deserve better than a “take it or leave it” attitude that is being espoused by some on this board. All clubs centered around children should have a way for coaches, kids and parents to communicate freely and openly about concerns.

There seems to be a major misalignment of expectations of what people want out of youth soccer clubs and what they actually are.

I see posts holding them to professional standards of the not-for-profit, educational and general business worlds. No-one can blame people for wanting the best for their children but this is miles away from what these clubs actually are.

With probably very few exceptions nationally, youth soccer clubs are run by people with very little or no professional education or business organizational experience. The primary source of revenue is player fees as most are not part of a pro or semi-pro club and youth soccer is not subsidized or affiliated in this country the way it is in others. So you have a very poorly run business that cannot afford quality administration and organization, which affects everyone negatively, hence the disorganization and lack of accountability and transparency. This model relies heavily on volunteerism and nepotism (heavily run by spouses of coaches/directors and parents) - like the soccer, these jobs are executed on an amateur level because of the low pay and standards.

On the coaching side, except for the top teams, these are typically men (and occasionally women) who have played amateur soccer at some point in their lives and have often coached their own kids when they were little enough to claim a few seasons of experience and call themselves a youth coach. Getting a D or grassroots coaching license is the very bottom of the barrel and it doesn't require any qualifications related to working with children and young people the way any other job would. Very few clubs do a legitimate screening and in many other fields some of these people will never qualify to work with children. Some behavior of coaching staff and parent on sidelines is the prime examples of an abusive culture that is tolerated in youth sports but has no place in any other child-centered environment. Most coaches have daytime jobs and do this on the side for various personal reasons (some more valid than others).

Now everything and everyone is not all bad. After all, some of our kids are learning and developing and enjoying the game. But if we have to be fair to them, we'd have to consider the environment that we're willingly putting them in. And simply paying fees with unsubstantiated expectations does not relieve us of our duty to demand the best for our children. It is our responsibility to ensure that our kids are in good hands and that they're having positive experiences. If you're not asking the questions and considering your coach's qualifications, the clubs organization and business practices when joining the club then you're simply punting the responsibility of protecting and nurturing your child to a group of strangers. Complaining on a blog about it doesn't do much either. If we don't start demanding higher standards, we'll never get them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If/when BSC parents and/or coaching staff can’t counter BSC abusive or authoritarian issues, their modus operandi is to divert attention, blame weak-minded parent/players and/or get the thread deleted.

Not a BSC parent but the original intent of this post was to bash the club. Insert any other club name and same would be true. If the OP truly cared, s/he wouldn’t be on DCUM they would be writing the BoD. But alas, they came on here to bash - period.

The OP doesn’t seem to care enough to try to fix the club. They say they are leaving and they are venting on the way out. Nothing wrong with that, as much as BSC may not like it.

And then people who do want to try to improve the club and seem to know about steps others have taken to do so starting posting some really interesting things. Why would any rational person have a problem with that? It’s ridiculous to keep repeating the tired “find a new club” line. I’m sure close to 100% of the families at Bethesda would instead rather stay at the convenient club in their local community and see the many management problems at the club taken care of.

Also, what rational argument is there for having no transparency or reporting from the Board?

Why would a parent think they have a role in the management of a club? You are a consumer, you can choose to buy or not to buy. Lots of Commanders fans (this one included) hated how Snyder ran the team, but their recourse was limited to voting with their wallet. BSC is a nonprofit which is a different context, but unless there is something in its governing documents that gives parents a role in its management (I admittedly have not looked), your choice is to stay or to leave. Accept it and move on, you and the rest of us who are happy with what the club provides for our kids will all be happier.

Why wouldn’t a parent think they should have a role in the management of a not-for-profit organization that serves their community and which is funded by their payments and to which they volunteer their time? Usually several of the BSC board members are parents, and for some 503(c)s, the membership elects the board. Thats clearly not the case at BSC, but their bylaws could be amended to allow for more parent involvement. At the bare minimum, the club should invite the community to attend meetings periodically, and there is zero excuse for not posting minutes.

None of those suggestions should make a parent who is happy at the club any less happy, and I’m not sure why any parent would want to sweep allegations under the rug or try to stifle reasonable voices of dissent. Healthy non-for-profits welcome transparency and community interaction.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If/when BSC parents and/or coaching staff can’t counter BSC abusive or authoritarian issues, their modus operandi is to divert attention, blame weak-minded parent/players and/or get the thread deleted.

Not a BSC parent but the original intent of this post was to bash the club. Insert any other club name and same would be true. If the OP truly cared, s/he wouldn’t be on DCUM they would be writing the BoD. But alas, they came on here to bash - period.

The OP doesn’t seem to care enough to try to fix the club. They say they are leaving and they are venting on the way out. Nothing wrong with that, as much as BSC may not like it.

And then people who do want to try to improve the club and seem to know about steps others have taken to do so starting posting some really interesting things. Why would any rational person have a problem with that? It’s ridiculous to keep repeating the tired “find a new club” line. I’m sure close to 100% of the families at Bethesda would instead rather stay at the convenient club in their local community and see the many management problems at the club taken care of.

Also, what rational argument is there for having no transparency or reporting from the Board?

Why would a parent think they have a role in the management of a club? You are a consumer, you can choose to buy or not to buy. Lots of Commanders fans (this one included) hated how Snyder ran the team, but their recourse was limited to voting with their wallet. BSC is a nonprofit which is a different context, but unless there is something in its governing documents that gives parents a role in its management (I admittedly have not looked), your choice is to stay or to leave. Accept it and move on, you and the rest of us who are happy with what the club provides for our kids will all be happier.

Thinking that no one would catch a fraudulent doc change is ridiculous. Transparency from the Board is a must.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If/when BSC parents and/or coaching staff can’t counter BSC abusive or authoritarian issues, their modus operandi is to divert attention, blame weak-minded parent/players and/or get the thread deleted.

Not a BSC parent but the original intent of this post was to bash the club. Insert any other club name and same would be true. If the OP truly cared, s/he wouldn’t be on DCUM they would be writing the BoD. But alas, they came on here to bash - period.

The OP doesn’t seem to care enough to try to fix the club. They say they are leaving and they are venting on the way out. Nothing wrong with that, as much as BSC may not like it.

And then people who do want to try to improve the club and seem to know about steps others have taken to do so starting posting some really interesting things. Why would any rational person have a problem with that? It’s ridiculous to keep repeating the tired “find a new club” line. I’m sure close to 100% of the families at Bethesda would instead rather stay at the convenient club in their local community and see the many management problems at the club taken care of.

Also, what rational argument is there for having no transparency or reporting from the Board?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If/when BSC parents and/or coaching staff can’t counter BSC abusive or authoritarian issues, their modus operandi is to divert attention, blame weak-minded parent/players and/or get the thread deleted.

Not a BSC parent but the original intent of this post was to bash the club. Insert any other club name and same would be true. If the OP truly cared, s/he wouldn’t be on DCUM they would be writing the BoD. But alas, they came on here to bash - period.

One of the issues with BSC is they don’t make the Board available. They are shielded, no contact info, and nothing is shared with club families about making complaints to them or anyone (ie Safesport). Part of what is allegedly coming to light is that patterns of complaints over multiple years have NOT been shared with the Board, and potentially false statements and/or concealment to them by management. And that’s part of what is being asked. To look backwards at allegations that may have been buried and to have an avenue going forward. Seems entirely reasonable and the right thing to do. This is a club for kids like 4-18 for goodness sake! I know, the horrors of the totally unreasonable families whose kids must suck and all they want is revenge, to ask for allegations to not be buried and for families to have an avenue to voice concerns! How awful of them!

Think about if this was true at any company, government agency, or typical 501(c)(3) of this size. Ethics hotlines, IGs, whistleblower protections and so on. I’m not saying BSC is the only soccer club deficient in this regard. Nor am I saying these clubs should operate like a large corporation with compliance departments. But the flip side to that is that it is totally unacceptable if numerous parent surveys have reported things that don’t see the light of day or emails/conversations die with JC. That’s a very dangerous setup and too much control for an entity that has so much impact on young children’s lives. Think of how many hours many kids dedicate to the club and spend around coaches.

Some check and balance is needed for everyone’s sake. Anyone arguing otherwise has their head in the sand.

Ultimately, this issue isn’t going to be decided on this message board and nobody can tell who actually knows things versus who is making sh*t up and/or exaggerating.

If I thought my kid were being abused, I’d immediately remove them from the situation, not write a letter or post on DCUM. I suspect that’s true for everyone, so those of you who are writing letters and posting on DCUM but keeping your kids at the club just don’t agree with how the club is run. Easy solution: find a club that better meets your needs and reflects your values.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If/when BSC parents and/or coaching staff can’t counter BSC abusive or authoritarian issues, their modus operandi is to divert attention, blame weak-minded parent/players and/or get the thread deleted.

Not a BSC parent but the original intent of this post was to bash the club. Insert any other club name and same would be true. If the OP truly cared, s/he wouldn’t be on DCUM they would be writing the BoD. But alas, they came on here to bash - period.

One of the issues with BSC is they don’t make the Board available. They are shielded, no contact info, and nothing is shared with club families about making complaints to them or anyone (ie Safesport). Part of what is allegedly coming to light is that patterns of complaints over multiple years have NOT been shared with the Board, and potentially false statements and/or concealment to them by management. And that’s part of what is being asked. To look backwards at allegations that may have been buried and to have an avenue going forward. Seems entirely reasonable and the right thing to do. This is a club for kids like 4-18 for goodness sake! I know, the horrors of the totally unreasonable families whose kids must suck and all they want is revenge, to ask for allegations to not be buried and for families to have an avenue to voice concerns! How awful of them!

Think about if this was true at any company, government agency, or typical 501(c)(3) of this size. Ethics hotlines, IGs, whistleblower protections and so on. I’m not saying BSC is the only soccer club deficient in this regard. Nor am I saying these clubs should operate like a large corporation with compliance departments. But the flip side to that is that it is totally unacceptable if numerous parent surveys have reported things that don’t see the light of day or emails/conversations die with JC. That’s a very dangerous setup and too much control for an entity that has so much impact on young children’s lives. Think of how many hours many kids dedicate to the club and spend around coaches.

Some check and balance is needed for everyone’s sake. Anyone arguing otherwise has their head in the sand.

Ultimately, this issue isn’t going to be decided on this message board and nobody can tell who actually knows things versus who is making sh*t up and/or exaggerating.