Saturday, March 31, 2007
The Thunder wants to form a mutually beneficial relationship with the public.
By JOHN KOVACH
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Mahoning Valley Thunder values the welfare of the community and the good opinion of its fans, and wants to build a close relationship with the Youngstown area.
That's why the arenafootball2 league team is planning to establish an outreach program for its players and personnel, so that they can participate in various events in the community sponsored by schools, clubs and other organizations in a mutually-beneficial relationship.
Phil Tesar, the Thunder's media relations coordinator, said that the Thunder will have players, cheerleaders, dance team members and Boomer the mascot available by request to attend various community events.
"This is a good way to get the [Thunder] message to the community. This will bring the community closer to the team," said Tesar, 25, a native of Cleveland, who is one of eight front-office personnel.
"We will evaluate every request from the public and determine if the event is beneficial to the public and the team."
Tesar, a graduate of Cuyahoga Heights High and a 2004 graduate of Hiram College, realizes how important the community is to the success of the Thunder, and how good public relations can expand support for the team.
"We will try to accommodate everyone's request but [we have] limited staff to accompany personnel on field trips because there are other demands on our personnel and players. Most of our players have full-time jobs. But we will do as many events as we can."
Because, "We realize that it is an win-win situation for the group that wants us and for the team. So we will try to fulfill our requests."
The front office
Tesar, who is in his first full-time public relations job after doing internships with the Cleveland Browns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Houston Astros and Toledo Mud Hens, is joined in the front office by team owners Dr. Michael Slyk, PharmD; Dr Jon Saadey, DDS; and Timothy Chesney, as well as general manager Adam Tokash.
The others are Ron Armour, director of operations and marketing; and Dan Kopp and Joseph Colon, account executives.
Ashley Souder serves as office manager while Chelsea Howe is the dance coordinator-choreographer.
Requests from the public for Thunder appearances at events may be made by calling the Thunder office at (330) 758-4232, or by e-mailing to admin@mahoningvalleythunder.com, or by mail to the Mahoning Valley Thunder, 888 Boardman-Canfield Road, Suite A, Boardman, Ohio 44512.
The Thunder will open the season today at 7:05 p.m. on Cortland Banks Field in the Chevrolet Centre against the Tri-Cities (Wash.) Fever.
His kind of game
Tesar said he likes indoor football because of "the speed of the game and the closeness to fans. I know as a fan I like to get close and get on top of it."
He expects that there will be times when players will fly off the field over the 48-inch high rubber wall that encircles the playing area, and plop into the lap of some fans.
"There will be interactions between players and fans," he said. "There is not a bad seat in the house."
kovach@vindy.com