Beacon’s Rheyan Cader Honored as Personality of the Month in the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
It’s very appropriate that Rheyan Cader of the Beacon Soccer Club is an avid sports fan supporting Liverpool, Red Bulls, the football Giants and the Yankees as he has something in common with Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson as both Rhey and Reggie can be called Mr. October.
The Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) is very pleased to announce that Rhey has been honored as Personality of the Month for October.
Our honoree was born in Zimbabwe, Africa and came to the United States in 1989 to attend SUNY New Paltz then Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh for his second degree. Rhey (pronounced like “Ray”) has been involved in soccer his entire life.
“It was what we did as a family and as a community. My father and uncles played for Arcadia United, a local club in the city that I grew up in, Harare, and at the conclusion of my uncle’s playing career, he assumed the role of club treasurer and also held other board positions,” Rhey stated. “I can remember going with him to games, cheering on the team and falling in love with the beautiful game! I started playing soccer socially at a very young age and then played club for Arcadia United and school ball for Prince Edward Academy right through the time I moved to the US to further my education. I was privileged to be selected to play on the regional and national school select team as a junior and senior in both soccer and basketball.”
In 1998, Rhey’s son Anthony turned four and he was eligible to play intramural soccer so his wife Saundra volunteered Rhey and his brother-in-law Charles to coach the team.
“The amazing thing is that I still keep in touch with many of the kids that played on the team and two of them currently play with my son on his college team so go Sage Gators!” Rhey said.
For nearly two decades, Rhey has coached three teams that have played in the East Hudson Youth Soccer League (EHYSL) and are all named the Beacon Burn. The first team, Beacon Burn, won the State Cup and they were followed by Beacon Burn ‘00 and Beacon Burn ‘03, the team he still coaches.
Besides volunteering as a coach, Rhey has moved up the ladder of the Beacon Soccer Club, currently made up of 400 boys players and 200 girls players, and has served as club president for the past dozen years. Accomplishments as president include a significant increase in registration for both intramural and travel team players, development of a travel team program that is highly competitive in EHYSL and Eastern New York, established a relationship with the Red Bulls focused on player development, started the Angel Fund to support families without financial means who have children interested in playing and recognize the accomplishments of all club members.
“When you think of Beacon soccer, Rhey Cader is the name you think of first. Following in the footsteps of some great leaders in the Beacon Soccer Club, Rhey has grabbed the baton and sprinted forward without missing a beat,” commented EHYSL President Jim Purdy. “In addition to the teams he coaches, Rhey has done everything humanly possible to ensure the youth of Beacon have the greatest soccer experience they could possibly have, for many years. His level-headed demeanor and firm leadership has helped shape the Beacon club to its excellent standing today. As a long-term club president, Rhey is also a person I can turn to when looking for feedback at the league level on new initiatives and ideas and his advice is always sound and spot on. He is a true soccer lifer and most deserving as Eastern New York Personality of the Month.”
Rhey is a father to three children––Anthony, Reanna and Zachary––and also volunteers with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and works at Novartis as Human Resources Business Partner, supporting the US Respiratory Franchise. He is responsible for aligning people to strategy, creating the right culture and developing future organizational capabilities that are critical for success, which is exactly what he has done as a soccer coach and club president.
Congratulations to youth soccer’s Mr. October, Rhey Cader.
Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association: With over 100,000 youth soccer players–both boys and girls–and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with 11 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators.
All levels of soccer are offered–from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Special Children. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association.
