Catching up with Salisbury graduate Jason Yeisley
Catching up with Salisbury graduate Jason Yeisley

What is your full name?
Jason Gerard Yeisley

When did you graduate from Salisbury?
2005

Tell us about your life since high school.
After graduating, I went to Penn State University and majored in Business Management with a minor in the Legal Environment of Business. I played soccer and was very lucky to step into a program where I had the opportunity to be impactful right away in my freshman year. During both my sophomore and junior years, I sustained several injuries to both knees and feet which required surgeries and significant time away from the game for rehab. I redshirted my senior year but was able to come back for a 5th year and enjoy a final, injury-free, and successful season. 

I graduated in 2009 and was drafted to Major League Soccer by FC Dallas for the 2010 season. We had a great team that year and it was incredible to play with players of that caliber. I was now playing with and against players I had watched and admired growing up. Preparing for games against players like David Beckham and Thierry Henry was very surreal. That year we made it to the MLS Cup Final but unfortunately lost in overtime.  

In 2011, I was picked up by the Pittsburgh Riverhounds and in 2012, I signed with the Richmond Kickers. Both teams play in the USL, which is the league under the MLS. While playing for the Kickers, I began coaching youth soccer. Coaching ended up being a natural transition once I retired from playing in 2016 and where I met my future wife.  

I still live in Richmond, Virginia and run a soccer program in both Richmond and Charlottesville for children ages 2-8. My wife, Carter, and I have two children, Beau (age 2) and Ellie (3 months), as well as a Labradoodle named Zoey and a 95lb Goldendoodle named Huckleberry (who lives up to his name).  

How has the pandemic impacted you and what have you learned from it?
Working in youth sports, the pandemic has very much impacted our industry. With our local stay-at-home order, we have obviously not been able to have sessions. With no sessions, it means no revenue which can get very tricky for paying bills like rent and payroll.  

Still, there have been many things I’ve learned from it.  We have zero control over it. Yes, everyone who is able to, should stay home to minimize the impact and stop the spread. However, there is nothing we can do to have everything go back to normal tomorrow—and we have to be ok with that. These are the cards we’ve been dealt and it’s our job to find the positivity out of it and make the best of the situation that we can.  

For me that’s meant more family time than I ever could have dreamed of over the past three months while I’ve worked from home, especially with the addition of our daughter right at the beginning of all this. So many people have lost their jobs and I am very grateful, at least for the time being, to still have a job that I love doing. I am also blessed that my family has stayed healthy when so many have not been as fortunate. 

What are your summer plans?
It really depends on how everything plays out. If things begin returning to normal, we hope to be busy with soccer sessions and camps near the second half of the summer. We’re also hoping to take some weekend family trips to some secluded places we enjoy like the Blue Ridge mountains for some hiking and the Chesapeake Bay for relaxation.  

What was your favorite high school memory?
Many of my favorite high school memories are soccer-related. Winning the Colonial League, districts, and team dinners we would have the nights before big games.  

What is your favorite movie or TV show and why? 
The Office. I don’t watch much TV but when I do, I like being able to turn my mind off and relax

How is your family doing?
We are all doing great. Beau is 2 years old and it has been such a fun age. The amount of growth and learning he does weekly is amazing. He’s gone from barely talking a few months ago to having full conversations. Ellie is 3-months old and is doing all the good things babies are supposed to do. She slept through the night from about the day we brought her home so we’ve been well rested for parents with a newborn! 

My brothers, Sean and Chris (also Salisbury graduates), are doing well too. Sean and his wife, Katie just recently moved to Richmond from the Washington DC area and we now live five minutes apart. We’ve been trying to convince my parents, who are still happily living in Salisbury, to move down this way too!  Chris is a doctor in NYC. He typically does radiology, but he’s been working in the covid ICU since the pandemic began. He has a 2-year-old daughter, Lydia. We’re looking forward to everything returning to normal so we can all spend time together soon.  

Who is your role model and why?
There isn’t just one person I consider a role model. I strive to be like my dad and grandfather in many ways. I also had many role models throughout my soccer career of individuals who I tried to learn from and emulate to become a better player. Role models are important but I think it is even more important to have solid moral compasses in your life and I am very fortunate to have several people who I can really lean on to ask difficult questions and get guidance.

#yoursalisbury