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Congratulations to FTWC's USANJ 2008 Place Winners:
Mekhi Lewis
Bantam 70 1st. place USANJ States
George Walton
Bantam 80 4th. place USANJ States
Michael Fagg-Daves Junior 90 4th. place USANJ States
Middle School:
Ryan Kaplan
Junior
112 3rd. place USANJ States
Anthony Messner Junior
119 3rd. place USANJ States
Brett Smith
Intermediate 75 7th. place USANJ States
Taylor Black
Intermediate 133 3rd. place USANJ States
***2/25/2007 FTWC WINS the Central Jersey Midget League A-Flight
Tournament for the second year in a row.***
Click here to see 2005-2006 Central Jersey Champ Pictures
Welcome to the Franklin Township Wrestling Club (FTWC). We welcome
children from K-6th grade. We wrestle in three different leagues,
Central Jersey Midget Wrestling League, Raritan Valley Midget Wrestling
League, and the K-2 League.
We have completed our 7th season as a club. We were crowned Tournament
Champions at the Central Jersey Midget League Flight-A Tournament in
March. Our Raritan Valley team was very competitive this season as we
had a very strong record of seasonal wins and medal winners at the
league tournament.
It was another banner year for FTWC at the USA NJ States as we sent an
unprecedented number of 20 kids and had the following wrestlers receive
a medal:
Ralph Normandia, 2nd Place-95lbs. Midget Division
Michale Fagg-Davies, 3rd Place-75lbs. Midget Division
Brett Smith, 3rd Place-60lbs. Junior Division
Anthony Messner, 4th Place-85lbs. Midget Division
Jonathan Black, 4th Place-90lbs. Midget Division
Taylor Black, 5th Place-100lbs. Junior Division
Tyler Connell, 7th Place-50 lbs. Bantam Division
Hunter Black, 7th Place-60 lbs. Bantam Division
Brad Weber, 8th Place-65 lbs. Bantam Division
Brandon Smith, 8th Place-75 lbs. Bantam Division
Ryan Kaplan, 8th Place-75 lbs. Midget Division
There are always two choices, two paths to take. One is easy, and that
is its only reward. One of our favorite motto’s in the club is “Hard
work beats talent, when talent doesn’t work hard”. Our success has been
a culmination of hard work and dedication from everybody within FTWC
which includes the kids, parents, and coaches. Every club has assistant
coaches and a staff that work behind the scenes to support the club. The
assistant coaches like Coach Pat, Coach Tony, Coach Ralph, Coach Jeff
and Coach Dan who were there at every practice, match and tournament. A
special thanks to Laurie, John, and Tom for all their leadership in fund
raising for FTWC. The golf tournament has become a special event as we
welcomed over 130 golfers to our outing last year. Every year the bar is
raised and a new standard is set for our wresting club that continues to
surpass all expectations. Leaders can accomplish little without
understanding and engaging the qualities of the heart. This club would
not be where it is today without rainmakers like our coaching and
administrative staff. Our kids are blessed to have the leaders we do.
Their commitment to the sport of wrestling is second to none.
We shape tomorrow’s world by what we teach our children today. Our kids
have learned that success in life is also what you do for others. Last
year, our parents and kids donated over $1700.00 to a 7 year old
wrestler that had an inoperable brain tumor. A memory of our kids
bringing in coins from their piggy bank will never be forgotten. Sadly,
that little boy has since been called up to the Lord, but we are
thankful that we had an opportunity to help the family in a very small
way. This past Christmas the club wrapped over 60 Christmas gifts and
dropped them off at the local DYFS organization in Parsippany. On March
4th, our youth partnered with the Somerset United Way and collected over
800 lbs. of food and canned items.
Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the
lesson afterwards. The sport of wrestling is a microcosm of society. It
teaches you about work ethic, character, discipline, humility, and
perseverance. In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the
stream always wins, not through strength, but through perseverance. It’s
through perseverance that our wrestlers have learned that at the heart
of every defeat, is the seed of a future victory. While the defeats can
be heartbreaking, it’s encouraging to watch the kids come off the
wrestling mat with dignity and professionalism.
FTWC would like to thank Bill Grippo and Sampson G. Smith School for
allowing us to practice and wrestle in the gym. We would like to thank
our parents for your support. We would like to thank the entire coaching
and administrative staff for making this such a wonderful and successful
organization to be part of. We would like to thank all our sponsors for
all your support for our golf outing and during the season.
We would like to thank two individuals that are affectionately known as
“Wes & Mes”. Remember that to the world you may just be somebody, but to
somebody you may be the world. Coach John (Wes) McGee and Coach Mike
Messner have been the head coaches for this club over the past five
years. In that time they have built a program that has been consistent
with building winners on and off the mat. More importantly, they have
been ambassadors of the sport for youth wrestling and have coached and
encouraged numerous kids from other towns. They have set the pace and
speed for FTWC and have set a new standard for others based on their
work ethic and personal sacrifice.
Kids don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.
Wes & Mes are not only coaches but they are teachers. They are molders
of dreams and share a vision for the kids to challenge themselves to
reach the next level. They provide the path for the kids to find their
way along life’s travels, and provide the spark that ignites the flame
in their hearts, to pursue their love to compete, to learn, and to
develop, not only as an athlete, but more importantly as a young adult.
This should be the sole reason why youth sports exist today, as we
remind ourselves that this entire experience is for the kids.
For the kids that will graduate our program this year, we find it
difficult to say goodbye. It’s these kids that started this winning
tradition and have made the letters FTWC synonymous with youth
wrestling. The door will stay open and the light will stay on for you to
come back and teach our younger kids. Youth wrestling is alive and well
in Franklin Township based on their leadership and hard work.
They say the greatest achievements are those that benefit others. You
can also add that the greatest lessons learned is when you are an active
participant in the game of life. As coaches and parents, you walk into
the door looking to make an impact, only to realize it was the kids that
made an impact on you. That’s the essence of youth wrestling. It will
change your life forever.
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