Jacket fans get to “Meet the Fall Athletes” (1 of 4)
Football YellowJackets scrimmage Carbondale Terriers in final warm-up for home opener next Friday August 29
BY JIM BEERS
Friday August 22 Chester High School held its annual “Meet the Fall Athletes” event at CHS W.O. Smith Field. Admission to the gala was only one bottle of Gatorade or a can of food. The Gatorade will be used by the athletes throughout the fall seasons and the food will be donated to the local Chester Area Christian Food Pantry.
Meet the Fall Athletes
At 5:00 p.m. Jacket fans were allowed to come down to W.O. Smith Football Field to “meet and greet” the fall athletes “up close and personal”. Players and members of all six fall programs were on the field. Fans took a wide variety of photos, visited, and got to know those athletes who would compete in fall sports.
This portion of the evening lasted for precisely 45-minutes. At 5:45 p.m. fans were asked to take their seats in the bleachers and all fall athletes were introduced by stadium announcer Luke Lochhead.
Introduction of Fall Athletes
Next on the program was the official introduction of all fall athletes. All six groups of fall athletes came to the field and were introduced as their names were called. Introductions were in the following order including Football, Volleyball, Cross Country, Golf, Dance Team, and Cheerleading.
Football YellowJackets
The 2025 YellowJacket Football Team was featured first, in order to allow them to prepare for the upcoming scrimmage with Carbondale. CHS has only 16 freshmen out for football this season, therefore the freshmen will not have a schedule of their own at this time. The JV Jackets will consist of both freshmen and sophomore players. There are 14 sophomore players on the JV squad for a total of 30 JV players.
2025 JV Football Team: Freshmen include Cannon Wolf, Reed Petrowske, Duncan Bargman, Ty Tindall, Cole McDonald, Danny Santay, Austin Davitz, Owen Sharer, Isaiah Lyons, Triston Pruess, Keegan Stauffer, Pedro Hernandez, Austin Partin, Adam Essman, Kingston Turner, & Ryland Welge. Sophomores include Gage Lynn, Reagan Sims, Brandon Korando, Rhett Creason, Anthony Keeton, Donnie Sabo, Jaden Ramirez, Adden Hecht, Eagan McClelland, Bentley Valleroy, Hayden Haslett, Paxton Beam, Avery Wittenborn, & Brock Fuller.
2025 Varsity Team:
The Varsity Team consists of 34 players including 14 sophomores, 10 juniors, and 10 seniors. Seniors include Derrius Shoemate, Isaac Sims, Tray Peters, Reed Creason, Ethan Colvis, Brayden Juenger, Trevor Keeton, Morgan Miers, Jakob Stueve, and Caleb Coffey. Juniors include Alex Blechle, Zane Eggemeyer, TaShawn Palacio, Kanon Jany, Landen Conder, Ryker Hoffman, Karim Landeros, Jackie Bess, Michael Montroy, and Trey McCartney. Sophomores include Gage Lynn, Reagan Sims, Brandon Korando, Rhett Creason, Anthony Keeton, Donnie Sabo, Jaden Ramirez, Adden Hecht, Eagan McClelland, Bentley Valleroy, Hayden Haslett, Paxton Beam, Avery Wittenborn, and Brock Fuller.
Football Staff:
Head Coach/Program Coordinator: Billy Belton.
Offensive Coordinator: Bill Belton
JV/Freshman Head Coach: Matt Colvis
Defensive Coordinator: Danny Roth.
Special Teams Coordinator: Charles Colvis
JV Offensive Coordinator: Daigen Hunter
JV Defensive Coordinator: Logan Doll
Wide Receiver and Defensive Backs Coach: Caleb Strauss
Running Backs Coach: Steven Roth
Offensive Line and Defensive Line Coach: Tim Mueller
JV Offensive Line and Defensive Line Coach: Freddie Welge
JV Quarterback Coach: Wyatt Rueling
This is for Pre-K and EC immediate family members only. Thank you
Weekly “Special Teams” player of the week sponsored by Korando Heating and Cooling, and “Practice Player of the Week” sponsored by Nighthawk Coal.
BY JIM BEERS
Chester High School Head Football Coach, Billy Belton, has announced that starting this 2025 CHS Football season his program will start a new award program. This program will be weekly and sponsored by Korando Heating and Cooling of Chester, and Nighthawk Coal.
Each week Belton and his staff will select two players to be recognized and honored. The first award will recognize the best “Special Teams” player of the week and the second award will recognize the best “Practice Player” of the week.
Belton is proud to announce the first two award winners of the 2025 YellowJacket Football season.
Korando Heating and Cooling “Special Teams” Player of the Week: Karim Landeros
Coach Belton said, “Karim has been coming in on Sundays and kicking by himself. Working out in the very hot and humid weather we have had lately is to be recognized. Karim s a hard worker! He is going to be a great weapon for us this year!”
Nighthawk Coal “Practice Player” of the Week: Isaac Sims
Coach Belton said, “Isaac is a first year player for the YellowJackets. He has done an amazing job for us! He is all hustle and never takes a play off. He is always making his teammates better!”
Each of the two weekly award winners will receive a special T-shirt provided by the two sponsors. Korando Heating and Cooling and Nighthawk Coal have stepped up to be the 2025 sponsors of the “Special Teams” and “Practice Player” of the Week Awards for Chester Football.
Coach Belton stated, “I would like to give a special THANK YOU to Korando Heating and Cooling and Nighthawk Coal for sponsoring our “Special Teams Player of the Week” program and our “Practice Player of the Week” program.
PHOTOS by JIM BEERS & ICONIK
CUSD 139 would like to introduce our employees to the community. There are many new faces as well as returning veteran staff. We are looking forward to the start of a great 2025-2026 school year and step forward with students first and the community we serve.
See attached graphic.
Week of August 25th
See attached graphic.
CHS MEET THE PLAYERS OF FALL
Friday, August 22nd, 2025
Be sure to come out tonight to SUPPORT all of your YELLOWJACKETS!
Introducing the Football, Volleyball, Cheer, Dance, Golf and Cross Country teams.
Pictures to start at 5:00pm at W.O. Smith Field
Bring a canned food or a bottle of Gatorade for entry.
Scrimmage vs. Carbondale High School to start at 7:00pm
The Chester Early Childhood Center and Chester Grade School Iconik School Picture Days are coming up Tuesday, September 2nd. Details on the graphic attached.
Board of Education Meeting Relocation
The August meeting of the CUSD 139 Board of Education, anticipated to be located in the Boardroom of the new
Chester Early Childhood Center (CECC),
has been relocated back to CHS Juergens Gym at 7:00pm, due to construction delays. Please enter through the main entrance #2.
CUSD 139 would like to introduce our employees to the community. There are many new faces as well as returning veteran staff. We are looking forward to the start of a great 2025-2026 school year and step forward with students first and the community we serve.
Week of August 18th
See attached graphic.
The Chester Early Childhood Center has rescheduled Open House to Monday, August 25th, 6:00-7:00pm.
This evening, we invite you to our Open House for grades 1 through 8, taking place from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM. You are welcome to bring your child’s classroom supplies during this time.
If your family needs help obtaining school supplies, don’t hesitate to reach out to our helpful office staff during the Open House.
Bussing Information:
* Please note that student bus routes have been updated in TeacherEase. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to visit the Transportation Table in the main lobby during Open House or call the school office.
* Bus route pick-up and drop-off schedules may vary during the first few weeks of school. It is recommended that you have your child ready and waiting before the scheduled bus arrival time, and be prepared for potential delays beyond that time. To guarantee that bus routes operate efficiently, students should be present at their bus stop or outside where the driver can easily spot them. Failing to do this may result in delays.
Below are some key dates for the CECC!
Monday, August 25th - PreK/EC Open House at the New CECC Building at 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday, August 26th - First Day of School for PreK/EC
Monday, September 1st - NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, September 2nd - CECC and CGS School Picture/Fall Sports Picture Day
We eagerly look forward to seeing you and kicking off the school year!
CHS SECOND DAY SCHEDULE UPDATE
See attached graphic.
Today CGS teachers: Mary Bohnert, Sue Colonel, Gail Kordys, and Robin Renfroe as well as CHS teachers: Steve Colonel and Cheri Diercks-Boyd, started the final first day of school in their careers, as each retire at the end of this school year. They have served our students and community, and have the opportunity of this final year to enjoy seeing the young people of Chester learn and grow, becoming our next generation. Thank you for your service!
Students started their morning with breakfast in the Professor Sharp Cafeteria, followed by an engaging opening presentation introducing our amazing staff. Throughout the day, groups rotated through sessions on bus evacuation, student pictures, the handbook, code of conduct, and Chromebook policy. After a delicious lunch, everyone followed their schedules for the final three periods. Here’s to a fantastic year ahead!
Staff Introduction Video
https://youtu.be/i9cXo8vXZ9o
Thursday, August 14th is the First Day of School
Additionally, it is Iconik Student Picture Day and Fall Sports Picture Day at CHS only.
See you in the morning for the start of a great year! Go Jackets!
IMPORTANT:
-Workforce, Opt-Out and Start-Up students are required to be in attendance at CHS Thursday, August 14th and Friday, August 15th, not their scheduled locations.
-Half Day CCSI students are required to be in attendance at CHS Thursday, August 14th. On Friday, August 15th, they will attend CCSI half day and finish their day at CHS.
-Parent Drop-Off & Pick-Up Location is on Swanwick Street in front of Professor Sharp Cafeteria. The bus porch drive is for buses only. These two designated drop off and pick up locations are established to ensure our student safety.
-Jostens reps will be in the building Thursday, August 14th to speak with Sophomores about Class Rings and Seniors about Graduation.
