THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, SEpTEmbER 19, 2025 ~ in Appreciation ~ Page 11 It’s all about family in the burgeoning Everett Youth Soccer League from preschool to high school Longtime administrator, coach John perkins, Sr. successfully oversees the program’s growth By Joe McConnell J ohn Perkins, Sr. has been synonymous with Everett Youth Soccer since 2007. The New York native, who came to Everett in 1999 after marrying his wife Samaria, got involved in the local youth sports league as a coach when his older daughter Stephanie signed up to play in it. Samantha and son John, Jr. soon followed her to get their own opportunity to join in on the fun. John, Sr. eventually ascended to league president in 2012, where he stayed in that capacity until 2018. His daughter Samantha is the current president since 2023. She also coaches several teams. Her dad still remains involved in the league as the vice president, and as a coach on the intramural level. He’s also helping Stephanie out this fall with her U-10 girls travel team. “All three of my kids went through the Everett school system, starting as Lafayette School students,” said John, who also lived in Shirley, Acton and Chelsea, before settling down in Everett on Greenhalge Avenue. All three Perkins kids ended up graduating from Everett High School after playing on its soccer teams. Stephanie also played tennis for the Crimson Tide and was a two-time soccer captain in 2016 and 2017. Samantha took over that role in 2020. John, Jr. played on the boys team, before graduating in 2022. Stephanie and Samantha were National Honor Society members. But they all know a lot about Everett Youth Soccer, thanks to their dad. John, Sr. has seen the ups and downs of the league, but he’s proud to say that the league is expanding exponentially today on all levels in both the boys and girls divisions. The league has always had suitable numbers among the boys. They continue to have teams on each level, while the girls at one time either had to play on one of the boys squads or go outside the city to suit up on girls teams in other communities. “We now have girls teams on the U-10, U-12 and U-14 levels during both the fall and spring seasons, while in the spring we also have U-16 and U-18 travel clubs,” said spring with the addition of the high school players. Perkins wants to acknowledge In 2011, the City of Everett honored the Everett Youth Soccer League U-10 Dynamos for their undefeated season in the Middlesex League. Front row, players Sherlyn Rodriguez and Samantha Perkins proudly hold their certificates of appreciation from the city. Sherlyn’s godfather and Samatha’s dad, John Perkins, Sr., is shown with Mayor Carlo DeMaria and Joe McGonagle at left. Samantha is now giving back to the league as its president since 2023, while dad John helps her out as the vice-president. John was a league president himself for six years from 2012-2018. (Courtesy photo) Perkins. “The boys, on the other hand, have never been a problem. We have over 30 boys alone in our U-8 intramural program that teaches these newcomers to the sport the (nuances) of the game. We also have three U-10 teams, plus two more each on the U-12 and U-14 levels. In the spring, we expand it to three U-16 teams, and possibly as many as two U-19 clubs, depending on the turnout.” In total, there are at least 250 youngsters playing soccer in the city during the fall season, and that number swells to 350 in the Eric Chajon, who succeeded him as president. Chajon stayed on the job through 2022, when he moved his family to Melrose, where he naturally got involved with its youth soccer program. Daughter Samantha took over for Eric as president and is presently in the middle of her third year at the helm with dad John nearby as the vice president. He has been in that position since 2019, the same year Samantha was elevated to director of the girls program. “Since 2017, the girls have had their own league in the city,” said Perkins. “They went from zero to actually having a (thriving) program in a short period of time.” Perkins wants to thank Guy DeFilippo and his daughter Rachel for all of their hard work over the years as the league’s registrar and bookkeeper, respectively. They stepped away from the league in 2019. “They did all the behind-thescenes computer work to make the entire program run smoothly, and quite frankly without their help at the time Everett Youth Soccer as we know it today would have folded,” said Perkins. Starting with the U-10 teams, Everett Youth Soccer plays regular season games, followed by two weeks of playoff s in the Middlesex League during the fall and spring seasons. But there’s no rest for the weary, because the league now has indoor soccer at the Madeline English School to keep the players involved in the sport throughout the winter months. There’s also a Junior Academy Program for 4and 5-year-olds. Today, it’s a league that has something for all Everett kids from preschool through high school. With rumors circulating on a possible new stadium being built here in the city to house the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer (MLS), Everett Parks & Recreation Assistant Director Roberto Velasquez is currently working with the Revs and Everett Youth Soccer to form a partnership to make the sport accessible for all Everett residents beyond the players in the league. It will give them a chance to play soccer for free all year long at the city’s indoor and outdoor facilities. “Hopefully, it happens,” said Perkins, whose tireless work to grow Everett Youth Soccer is second to none. 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