Enjoying another side of sports

WW-PN pair happy to be a part of every team

By: Bob Nuse
   As much as Jen Mealy and Brittany Dimitruk enjoyed playing sports, they can no longer imagine being back on the competitive side of sports.
   Since arriving at West Windsor-Plainsboro High North, both students have become involved in the school’s student trainer program. And as much as they enjoyed competing, both seem to have found a niche with their work with WW-P North trainer Chris Welch.
   "I swam my sophomore year and I enjoyed the experience," said Mealy, whose father, Bill, is a cross country, wrestling and track coach at WW-P North. "But I love being able to be part of every sport, which we are. When you’re on a team you’re just with the team you’re with. But we get to be a part of every team that we have at the school."
   Mealy, a senior, is in her fourth year in the athletic training program. Dimitruk is a junior who has been in the program for three years. It’s something both could see themselves doing for many more years down the road.
   "I definitely want to go into athletic training for a career," Dimitruk said. "I enjoy it a lot and this is something I can see myself doing 10 years from now."
   Mealy plans to either go into athletic training or education, or possibly both. It was at a young age that she found herself involved with helping Welch, who started as the athletic trainer at what is now WW-P South in 1993.
   "My brother (B.J.) did a lot of sports and it always seemed like he was bleeding or he made someone else bleed," Mealy recalled. "He would be in Mr. Welch’s office all the time, so I would also be in there and I always thought it was pretty cool. And my dad was an assistant track coach with Mr. (Paul) Glass, so a lot of times he would be out on a run and there would be no place for me to go. So I would wind up with Mr. Welch. It seems like I’ve always been in the trainer’s room."
   Mealy, Dimitruk and the other student trainers probably feel like they spend most of their time in the trainer’s room. In addition to helping when they get a chance during the school day, they also spend their afternoons and evenings helping Welch as much as they can.
   "When I first got into it I wasn’t sure what to expect," Dimitruk said. "But it’s so much fun. We’ve learned so much. We’ve learned how to prevent and treat injuries. We learned a lot in class with Mr. Welch, but there is so much more that we’ve been able to learn. It’s been a great experience."
   Because Mealy is using her work as a student trainer as independent study, she spends three periods a day in the trainer’s room, as well as her time after school. And as much as they enjoy it, all the student trainers know helping out is serious business.
   "Mr. Welch makes sure we do everything right," Mealy said. "He’s there over our shoulder all the time when we’re working on people. We’re not allowed to work on the athletes unless they’ve seen Mr. Welch first. If a student wants ice, they can’t have it until he sees them first.
   "He’s taught us a lot about responsibility and what we need to do. As much as we have fun, we know this is serious and we know our limitations."
   And even though they’re not full-fledged athletic trainers, the help they’re able to provide is valuable to Welch and the student-athletes who benefit from what they have to offer.
   "This is the type of thing that you either like it or you don’t," Mealy said. "We happen to love it. It can get to be pretty crazy in the room, but you either have to be able to handle the chaos or get out of the room, that’s the motto we use.
   "We’ve gotten to meet so many people because of this. It’s been great and it’s something we love to do."
   And it is a love that benefits the school and its student-athletes more than they could ever imagine.