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HOOD RIVER — The Hood River Valley Parks and Recreation District (HRVPRD) has hired former Wy’east athletic director and migrant education director Jaime Rivera as the new recreation supervisor. The position is new for the Parks District and his aim will be to provide youth with sports and recreation opportunities for the entire county.
Jaime Rivera is the new recreation supervisor at Hood River Valley Park and Recreation District.
Contributed photo
Recently, the HRVPRD partnered with the Hood River County School District to provide many of the opportunities for youth sports and recreation, which were previously part of Community Education.
“Jaime brings a great deal energy and a lot of experience to this position,” said Mark Hickok, director for the Parks District. “His background managing youth leagues, his love for the community, and his passion for making recreational programs accessible to all Hood River residents make him a great fit for the position.”
Rivera’s resume includes two-time state championships as the boys soccer coach at Hood River Valley High School, athletic director for Wy’east Middle School, director for the migration education program at HRVHS and some previous experience in a Parks and Rec program in Arizona where he led youth soccer camps and spent time as a referee. He added that his time in Phoenix gave him more perspective and a different outlook working at an entry level position.
“Being involved with sport at a different level, other than being an athlete. That did light the fire,” said Rivera.
He moved back to Hood River and took the head soccer coaching job. In nearly two decades as head coach, Rivera has engineered and created a soccer community so talented, multiple division one recruits have left Hood River and gone pro. One of those players is now his assistant, Giovanni Magana-Rivera. Hired about two weeks after Rivera, he is already involved in the planning and organization of summer youth camps. But their relationship started way back when Magana was in middle school and Rivera started a youth league where local teams could compete against each other.
“It started in the 4-H league where our parents would start teams and we could play with and against our friends,” said Magana. “So when we got to high school we already had that chemistry.”
Rivera and Magana went on to win back-to-back state titles which included a Player and Coach of the Year honors for the duo. Today, they are hoping to bring that same energy to the Parks and Rec programs.
Their aim is to fill holes where some programs or activities may not have as many resources or support. Last week, they met with head coaches from around the valley to get their input on how to improve and enhance the players, coaches and parents experiences with youth programming. Rivera says many of the sports have created their own youth leagues and he wants to take account of who and what already has a system in place.
“It is important that we take a look and see what’s out there,” said Rivera. “We are trying to improve everything from consistent scheduling to our communication.”
Rivera also hopes everyone can have an enjoyable time.
“It may sound corny, but I want the families to enjoy the experience,” said Rivera. “As a father of two I understand how much sports can mean to the parents and the next generation.”
Much of the planning underway is centered around the spring and summer months.
COVID has made it difficult for parents to find childcare, and the summer camps are a huge help for them to keep the children entertained. The HRVPRD is still finalizing a position for the summer camp supervisor job.
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