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03/31/2016 12:00 AMEveryone reads about the achievements of athletes and their coaches, but many don’t realize there are people behind the scenes who work hard to make sure the games even take place. Alison King, the assistant administrator to Valley Regional Athletic Director Jeff Swan, is one of the main reasons we all get to enjoy the world of high school sports. Alison does all the things that often go unnoticed and her fingerprints are stamped on every Warriors’ sporting event, whether they’re playing at home or on the road.
“She is the backbone of our program. She is absolutely wonderful, my right-hand man. We are a team and it is a team I want to be a part of,” says Swan. “There are too many tasks to list, but she tackles every problem, solves them, and assists in every aspect of putting on the games, from securing the fields to all the paperwork involved. I try not to overuse her, but it’s hard because she is so great at what she does.”
Alison’s job involves a variety of responsibilities, such as budgeting, scheduling games, and arranging team’s transportation to and from those games; as well as finding event staff, security, announcers, scoreboard operators, referees, maintenance people, and concessions workers. Then there’s the paperwork—lots and lots of paperwork.
“It’s different for every season. In the fall, we have to make sure the lights are on for football games. That one always makes me nervous,” Alison says with a laugh. “There’s parking, making sure an ambulance is at the games, scheduling, buses, tickets, purchase orders. There are a lot of challenges and situations we have to handle, like cancellations due to weather and other circumstances, and we have to line up officials and make sure they get paid. For instance, operating the scoreboard is a difficult job. There’s a lot of pressure, so I really have to thank the many workers and volunteers for their help. They are amazing because, without them giving their time, it would be impossible to do what we do and they make the games happen.”
Alison came to Valley with a great knowledge of athletics as the Coginchaug graduate starred in three sports in high school. Alison played soccer, basketball, and softball at Coginchaug and was also a captain for all three sports her senior year. As a member of the Blue Devils’ softball squad, she earned Second Team All-Shoreline Conference honors in left field, while helping Coginchaug win a state title in 1994 with an 8-2 victory over Trinity Catholic.
Alison then attended Hofstra University in New York, from which she graduated with a degree in community health. After college, Allison planned recreational programs for seniors at nursing homes and later worked at Stone Ridge, a continuing care retirement community in Mystic, where she was the fitness manager. Alison loved the job, but the Deep River native wanted to be closer to home as she and her husband Kevin have three young children in Emma (12), Kevin Jr., (11) and Chase (8), who all play multiple sports in town.
“Sports is all we do!” says Alison. “When the TV is on, we are always watching sports. All of my children are athletic. My husband played three sports for Haddam-Killingworth. The kids are very active and it is such a great way to stay healthy, be competitive, and learn teamwork. We are a sports family.”
Alison knew she wanted to stay in athletics when she looked for a new position. When she saw the opening for the assistant administrator with Valley athletics last August, Allison knew it was the right opportunity.
“I absolutely love it. The students are great, the coaches are all wonderful people to work with, and Jeff is the hardest-working person I know,” Alison says. “He teaches full-time and then runs the entire athletic department, which a huge undertaking. He is incredible to work for and loves all the students. I also have to thank Cindy Downie. She held the position before me and Cindy trained me. I had really big shoes to fill and she helped me so much. I couldn’t have found a better fit. It’s perfect.”
So the next time you go watch the Warriors play, take a minute to look at the people whose effort helps the kids live their dreams on the field and you’ll probably see Alison there with her family.
“Alison is so invested in the program,” says Swan. “Her family goes to all the games and supports the Valley teams. I am so happy to have her and she is not just a hard worker, but a great person, too.”