The Greece community held its annual sports awards ceremony last week at the Greece Town Hall, honoring local residents with awards for community service, coach of the year, female and male athlete of the year and lifetime achievement.
Greece Arcadia senior Steven Klimek was selected as the Greece Male Athlete of the Year. Son of Roger and Lori, Steven was a four year member of the varsity baseball and basketball teams, earning MVP honors twice in both sports. He was selected first-team All-County three times in both sports and was named first-team All-Greater Rochester two times in both sports. A second-team All-State selection in baseball for his sophomore and junior seasons, Steven was also a two time member of the Section 5 All-Tournament Team. A member of the school symphonic band and the Scott Spino Literacy Foundation, Steven will take an 88 average in the classroom to St. Bonaventure College this fall.
Greece Athena senior Shannon Kirkpatrick was selected as the Greece Female Athlete of the Year. Daughter of Neil and JoAnn, Shannon was a five year member of the varsity basketball team, a four year member of the varsity volleyball team and a two year member of the varsity track and field team, for which she competed in the 2012 state qualifiers and holds the school record for discus throw. A two time sectional champion on the basketball court Shannon led the Trojans in scoring and rebounding as a team captain her senior season, earning first-team All-County honors, second-team All-Greater Rochester honors, 13th-team All-State honors and Section 5 Class AA sectional tournament MVP. Also a captain in volleyball, Shannon was named first-team All-Greater Rochester, Section 5 Division II Player of the Year, first-team All-County and team MVP. Shannon has received a scholarship to play Division I volleyball at Binghamton University this fall.
The 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award was bestowed upon Jim Press. Press has worked for the Greece Central School District for 25 years, providing countless sports teams with safe passage to and from events. An avid supports of high school athletics, Jim especially enjoyed driving the varsity tennis teams from the district. He has always enjoyed watching and encouraging the student athletes throughout their contests. While he has had many memorable events over the years, a few instances stand out. The first was watching Greece Olympia kicker Kevin Knope connect for a 58-yard field goal, one of the longest in Section 5 history. Another was watching J-Mac’s drain six three-pointers in his memorable game. A role model for students, Jim believes in leading by example. He has participated in 105 marathons, and you can probably see him jogging on Maiden Lane training for his next.
The Greece community held its annual sports awards ceremony last week at the Greece Town Hall, honoring local residents with awards for community service, coach of the year, female and male athlete of the year and lifetime achievement.
Greece Arcadia senior Steven Klimek was selected as the Greece Male Athlete of the Year. Son of Roger and Lori, Steven was a four year member of the varsity baseball and basketball teams, earning MVP honors twice in both sports. He was selected first-team All-County three times in both sports and was named first-team All-Greater Rochester two times in both sports. A second-team All-State selection in baseball for his sophomore and junior seasons, Steven was also a two time member of the Section 5 All-Tournament Team. A member of the school symphonic band and the Scott Spino Literacy Foundation, Steven will take an 88 average in the classroom to St. Bonaventure College this fall.
Greece Athena senior Shannon Kirkpatrick was selected as the Greece Female Athlete of the Year. Daughter of Neil and JoAnn, Shannon was a five year member of the varsity basketball team, a four year member of the varsity volleyball team and a two year member of the varsity track and field team, for which she competed in the 2012 state qualifiers and holds the school record for discus throw. A two time sectional champion on the basketball court Shannon led the Trojans in scoring and rebounding as a team captain her senior season, earning first-team All-County honors, second-team All-Greater Rochester honors, 13th-team All-State honors and Section 5 Class AA sectional tournament MVP. Also a captain in volleyball, Shannon was named first-team All-Greater Rochester, Section 5 Division II Player of the Year, first-team All-County and team MVP. Shannon has received a scholarship to play Division I volleyball at Binghamton University this fall.
The 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award was bestowed upon Jim Press. Press has worked for the Greece Central School District for 25 years, providing countless sports teams with safe passage to and from events. An avid supports of high school athletics, Jim especially enjoyed driving the varsity tennis teams from the district. He has always enjoyed watching and encouraging the student athletes throughout their contests. While he has had many memorable events over the years, a few instances stand out. The first was watching Greece Olympia kicker Kevin Knope connect for a 58-yard field goal, one of the longest in Section 5 history. Another was watching J-Mac’s drain six three-pointers in his memorable game. A role model for students, Jim believes in leading by example. He has participated in 105 marathons, and you can probably see him jogging on Maiden Lane training for his next.
Byron George was selected as the Greece Coach of the Year. A special education teacher at Greece Olympia, George recently earned his CAS in Education Administration and is currently working towards earning his doctorate in Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment. George credits his college experiences and interactions for molding him into the coach that he is today. His strong work ethic and values live on at Utica College in the form of “The Byron C. George Award”, which honors an athlete, selected by the coaching staff, who portrays outstanding leadership qualities. As a coach, his proudest moments are watching his student-athletes graduate and apply the skills they have learned on and off the field to better their lives and their communities. His track and field accomplishments include 2012 Section 5 Class A champions, 2012 Monroe County champions, 2012 Hurley Quinney champions and 2012 Marion Invitational champions. George has had the pleasure of coaching nine individual sectional title winners, the No. 2 ranked freshman sprinter in the nation, according to New Balance, the No. 3 nationally ranked long jumper and the Milesplit US First-Team Elite high jumper, nine athletes who competed at states in the last two years and 14 collegiate student-athletes. He is happy to announce his engagement to Jennifer Jones, and is looking forward to their wedding on September 1.
Mike Burke was awarded the Greece Community Service Award. A baseball coach for 16 years, bowling coach for 11, basketball coach for 10 and girls soccer coach for 4, Burke has given his time and efforts to countless groups and organizations in the Greece area. His “Top Ten” volunteer/community service moments are: 1. Olympia Bowling “Adopt a Family”, 2. Campin’ for Camryn on the roof, 3. Fight for Eric, 4. Hoops for Hope undefeated streak, 5. Spring picnics and “Hots for Hope”, 6. Seneca Invitational Open 5k’s, 7. Musical dinner and raffles for cancer research and Hope, 8. Greece Olympia “Games of the Week”, 9. Science Department Casino to benefit Leukemia patients, 10. “Hope for the Hollidays” benefit at holiday time.
“I would like to thank my friends and family for the support over the years when I have been involved in activities at Olympia,” said Burke. “I would not be able to do it without you, especially my loving wife and daughter. Thank you to all of the teacher and staff that attend all of our events and graciously donate time and money. It would not be possible without such a wonderful and caring group of people. The community of Olympia has done more for me than I could ever do for it!”
