Recently, the Camp Starlight blog caught up with our very own Head of Soccer Matt Whatley to find out more about him as well as why he chose to work at camp–in particular, Camp Starlight.

Matt (“Whatley”–as he is affectionately known by the Starlight family)has been working in the camp industry for 15 years, 9 of those years at Camp Starlight. He says he was drawn to traditional sports camps like Starlight because, unlike at camps that specialize in soccer, he gets to see the campers in a non-soccer environment. Prior to coming to Camp Starlight, Whatley worked in other camps within Wayne County and decided to come to Starlight because of the excellent facilities and great campers.

Although he has called the United States home for more than 10 years, he is originally from Kent, England. His love of travel is highlighted by his career path as well as his education. In addition to having lived in New Zealand and Canada, he now calls Malaysia home during the winter months. There, he works for the US Sports Academy as a physical education teacher and coach. His education was also an international affair. He attended Manchester Metropolitan University, The University of Greenwich in London  and Rockford College in Illinois.

He has been coaching for more than 20 years and, for 8 of those years, he coached nationally ranked college programs. He has also coached for Charlton Athletic FC and worked with teams at the USL 2 Academy. When asked why he decided to become a coach, he is not without a sense of humor, “Because I don’t like wearing a shirt and tie.” His favorite thing about being a coach is seeing the progression of players as they learn new skills.

His list of Camp Starlight “favorites” is a long one. He has quite the reputation for his love of Canteen and his penchant for putting in “special” birthday party appearances. He also loves visiting the Magic and Tennis programs as well as watching Jason Glick’s dancing on Friday evenings.

Aside for his intense love of soccer, he is a passionate cyclist. In fact, he once cycled from Alaska to New Mexico.  He’s also a bit of prankster and enjoys a good practical joke.