Petoskey's Jonker recognized with Glenn H. Casey Award

PETOSKEY — Over the last couple decades, if there’s something that goes on around the Petoskey community with soccer involved, chances are Zach Jonker has a foot in it.

The Petoskey High School teacher and head coach of the varsity boys and girls soccer programs has a reach in the sport that goes far beyond the high school level.

Jonker has also been an integral part of the Petoskey Parks and Recreation and Petoskey Youth Soccer Association (PYSA) levels in helping the game grow in northern Michigan.

He was also recently an obvious and unanimous choice as the latest recipient of the 41st annual Parks and Rec. Glenn H. Casey Award.

Jonker was presented with the honor Monday outside the Petoskey City Hall building, alongside Parks and Rec. Director Kendall Klingelsmith, Recreation Programer Ed Smith and a host of others Jonker has worked with or impacted over the years.

“I feel really fortunate to work in this community,” said Jonker. “I’ve worked with Ed for a really long time, dating back to when my kids were just getting involved with Parks and Rec. programs, everything from ski lessons to figure skating, soccer and basketball, so it’s been a pleasure to work with the city and hopefully it helped move those programs forward a little bit.”

The Glenn H. Casey Award was established in 1981 to recognize a recreation volunteer who has exhibited an outstanding commitment to the city’s recreation program.

Casey was the original chairman of the Parks and Recreation department.

Jonker has helped run coaching camps within the Parks program, typed up countless programs, run clinics and changed how the game of soccer is taught to those just beginning in the sport at a young age.

“I’m a huge proponent of grassroots youth sports,” said Jonker. “I think the more inclusive we can be with those programs the better and the Petoskey Parks and Rec. program is the epitome of that, in terms of exposing kids and being fully inclusive at the youngest ages and making it affordable and accessible. It’s a really easy program to want to support and want to help out with.”

Along with the Parks and Rec. program, Jonker has coached at multiple levels within the PYSA and has coached both his children, Jackson and Brynn, at the high school level. He also grew up through the PYSA program himself.

With the Northmen soccer programs, Jonker has won more than a handful of district and regional titles and taken a team to the state finals in the sport.

Through it all, from working with the kids in the Parks and PYSA youth levels, to teaching Economics at the high school and coaching Northmen athletes, the relationships built over the years are what stand out the most.

“I’ve got to work with a ton of incredible kids and families,” said Jonker. “A lot of those families have become some of our best friends and it’s really cool to be in the high school, where I’ve been able to build relationships with kids at a young age, then maybe I don’t see them for a few years and then they’re in my classroom. That’s been fun.”

Glenn H. Casey Award

Past 15 Recipients

2021 — Gene Champion

2019 — Dennis & Karen Starkey

2018 — Karen Flynn

2017 — Allen Hansen

2016 — Richard Harbaugh

2015 — Dave Hansen

2014 — Dree Lo

2013 — Jack Taylor

2012 — George Newson

2011 — Gary Hunter

2010 — Paul Reed

2009 — Pete Wooters

2008 — Pam Hodge

2007 — Paula Beyer

2006 — Roy Harvey

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey's Jonker recognized with Glenn H. Casey Award