Hobbies William Antunez – eCommerce Manager (Kent)
Like the popular depiction of young children playing soccer in the streets of Latin American countries, so was the way that William Antunez learned the game in his native country of Honduras. Despite his mother telling him to study and focus on school, William would often take to the streets to polish his skills as a soccer player. William learned to play on hard surfaces like many of the worlds’ best players - in street alleys, using a ball if they could find one, or a tin can if that was all that was available. He didn’t have the opportunity to play club soccer while growing up but many of the older kids in his neighborhood did. To keep up and compete with the older kids, William needed to be stronger and faster. He loved pushing himself and his teammates from the position of underdog where they fought hard for that opportunity to succeed against the bigger, better, faster players. Fast-forward to the early 2000’s when William and his family came to the US. Settling in the Akron area, William’s passion for soccer was still just as strong as it had been in Honduras. While looking for an opportunity to play competitive soccer, William joined a local organized league and pulled together enough players to field a team. His leadership and organizational skills were put to the test when he was asked to be the VP of NOASA – North Ohio Amateur Soccer Association. With incredible drive and determination, William was able to help re-build the open division and grew it from 1 to 12 teams.
Marriage and having children resulted in William pulling away from his leadership role for a few years but he continued to play. Sadly the 12 teams dwindled to 8 teams over the next years and some of the remaining teams started talking about branching out to start a new league threatening to evaporate the open division. William came back to help build the new open division into a new organization, the Akron Premier League was built and now has a fully functioning board of directors and 11 highly competitive teams. 2022 was a highlight for William when his team won the Championship. About 4 years ago, William started coaching youth soccer for his sons’ team - using the “be the change you want to see” philosophy when he realized the kids needed better coaching. William admits that he was terrified at first – he was
worried about negatively influencing or impacting kids – but after the 1 st season, the feedback from the parents was phenomenal bringing their kids back every season and praising the advanced learning their kids experienced. Since then, the team has moved up two levels and are competing against older kids. William’s approach has always been that it is not about winning but about having fun, learning, and working hard. William humbly shares: “It turns out that the most amazing thing is the opportunity to be a positive role model and impact a child’s life in a good way. I’m just grateful for the opportunity!”
Made with FlippingBook. PDF to flipbook with ease