Lenny, and his driver 7th grade teacher Susan Hearn were in attendance, as was MS Girls Soccer mascot and band-dog Jackie who is catered to by Coach and Band leader John Howard and most any musician that happens by the Band Room.

Lenny--perennial Burke 7th grader

Jackie--the Band Room dog

Burke MS Boys Soccer in Action

The 2011 Middle School Boys Soccer squad saw some great players move up to 9th grade this Fall. That worrisome situation for the team turned out just fine: a crew of eight strong, energetic, and talented 6th graders arrived in the nick of time to join our stalwart 7th graders Ian and Josh with their new 7th grade classmate Tye, and the seven returning 8th graders. We have refilled the boys soccer pipeline, and we are on the field with a talented eighteen-man roster.

Watching the lads at their first few games is terrific fun. They go hard at it and do Burke proud. So let’s congratulate Burke Admissions on the fine new talent they provided for the team!

Our coaches are new-to-Burke-coaching Justin Reid, assisted by Sam Ross. Coach Justin, when he’s not working with our boys, runs QuickFeet Soccer Training. He’s a seasoned coach and player who was born in Edmonton, Alberta, but grew up in DC, and went to Sandy Spring Friends School and then the University of Delaware. Coach Sam is a Burke math and Latin teacher, and the 12th Grade Dean. He’s also the Dad of 6th grader Jamie Ross.

Next game is Friday, September 30 at our own Howard Field on Upton Street. No excuses that it’s too far! Come on out and cheer for the boys!

For a full set of pictures, visit Burke’s Flickr page. The pictures are courtesy Jane Mahaffie and John Mahaffie (the blurry ones). You should be able to snag a photo or two of your young player. Sorry if your child didn’t turn up in a picture, we’ll be taking more, so check back.

Thursday, our 7th graders had the first of four visits to F&F. Along for the driving were Abby’s mom Trudy Vincent, Zach W’s mom Mary Karol Cline, and math teacher extraordinaire Judy Hill. There were groups there also from UW Madison, and Denision Universities. Our crew was set on deliveries while others worked in the kitchen and food packaging.

I had the privilege of driving for a crack crew of deliverers, Esme, Lily, and Charlie. They did all the work, the strategizing, the directions-following, the paperwork, the who gets which packaging figuring, the apartment intercom system hacking, and the people contact. I managed DC traffic, construction diversions, and one-way streets. I have some pride in my knowledge of DC streets, but my crew could have done all of this with no adult help. Well done kids!

If you get the chance to go along with the Burke students to Food & Friends, do it. It’s a great thing to do. And, as Esme said, “this is really fun!”

Below are some action shots from last Thursday’s game vs. Covenant Life.  You can see more pictures at the link below. David Hunt, Daniel (8th grade) gets credit for most of the good ones.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/burkepix/sets/72157625121224918/, and download any you’d like to have/print.

Enzi makes his move

Keeper Ben in action

Daniel Pours on the speed

Protecting the goal

Burke Fans!

Here’s the scene, courtesy of Charlie’s phone camera, with special permission granted during a school day to turn it on!

David changes a lightbulb

Closeup of David Panush Changing a lightbulb

We also had terrific food for the kids and parents, brought by a lot of parents, but orchestrated by Ellen Wilson, Sue Okun, and Eliza Button.

There are some pictures of the activities on Burke’s Flickr page. The good ones are by Mary Taylor. Thanks Mary!