The sports pages of the Smoke Signal are mostly committed to the accomplishments of students. After all, the high school has some of the best teams in Western Massachusetts, and even the state. It is indeed well-deserved, then, when the endeavors of these teams are printed in the school newspaper. Under the radar, however, are the accomplishments of the high school’s very own teachers. From soccer to snowboarding, the Minnechaug teaching staff participates in an array of sports.

Michelle Robitaille, , loves to run. “I love the feeling of accomplishment you get when you’ve finished a hard workout,” said Robitaille. “When you’re running outdoors, you can get into your own world. And you get to meet a lot of interesting people at road races.”

Another new gym teacher, Robert Arnett, also participates in competitive sports. He is a quarterback for the Mass. State Warriors, a semi-pro football team in the NEFL, or New England Football League. Arnett said his enjoyment of sports comes from “the thrill of competition…the feeling of working towards something and reaching that.”

It’s not just gym teachers who play sports, however. Robert Melnik, a technical education teacher, loves to snowboard. The best part of snowboarding, for Melnik, is “hanging out with friends.” Melnik encourages the devoted snowboarder to keep at it, because of the benefits of being paid to do something you love. “If you really want to, you can. It’s not as hard to get sponsored as you’d think.”

From the most unlikely of places, the math department, are two gifted soccer players, Karl Labadorf and Jennifer Genovevo. Both are active in adult soccer leagues. Genovevo, a midfielder/forward, says her motivation for the game is the team atmosphere.

“I grew up playing soccer and being a part of a team,” said Genovevo. Labadorf, who has played for 23 years, including in college, now plays in an adult league at Soccer City, and in a coed league at the Coliseum.

Charles Hill, another esteemed math teacher, pole vaults each year at the Senior Games. In an interview with the Union News, Hill made his goals for pole vaulting clear.

“I was hoping for 8-6, I did 14-6 in college [U.S. Naval Academy] so it’s a big drop.”

For Hill to be pole vaulting many years after his college days is a great feat indeed. Many students know him as a compassionate coach and a gifted teacher, but few know him as an excellent athlete outside the classroom.

Teachers generally advise their students to do well in school. But teacher athletes also have advise for their students. Genovevo says the dedicated student athlete should “stay dedicated to it and try not to give up.” Arnett tells students wanting to pursue sports after high school to keep on working at their goals as their body allows. According to Arnette, “age is just a number.”

Although unknown to many students, a great number of teachers in the school are have talents reaching far beyond the limits of the classroom. But even on the playing field, teachers will always have something to teach us. No matter what reason you’re doing it for, it should be fun. Enjoy it,” said Labadorf.