CARMEN SCOPPETTUOLO

1

Moved to 'America's Finest City' in August of 1981 after a brief sportswriting career at the Elizabeth Daily Journal. Dreamed of being a sportswriter...graduated from Glassboro State College (Rowan) with a Journalism Degree...was very fortunate to find a sportswriting job at age 22...covered the Yankees, U.S. Open Golf Championship and other great events...but didn't like working nights and weekends...so I quit.

I threw the winning goal in the first UPA Ultimate Frisbee National Championship game in 1979 when Glassboro State beat Santa Barbara 18-17 at State College, PA. The New York Times and Philadelphia Inquire covered the event.

My 12-year-old son, Stone, was voted to the 2010 Travelball 11-Under All America Baseball team. He won the Most Valuable Player Award in the National Championship Tournament in August. He is the centerfielder/pitcher for the San Diego Stars baseball team, who won two National Championships when they were 9 and 10...and placed second this past year.

My 17-year-old son C.J. is an amazing artist, golfer and piano player, but he really doesn't have a passion for sports. He is a Junior at La Jolla High School with A's and B's.

My daughter, Dakota, now 15, is very funny...and she wants to be an actress. She is a great athlete, one of the fastest sprinters in town, boys included. She's starting to play the guitar, so we'll someday be a duo. All three kids are gorgeous.

My wife and I play a lot of tennis...separately. All those tennis players and golfers I teased in high school and college are teasing me now. My two brothers, Mike and Ron, my two sisters, Maria and Dolores, and my parents still live in Jersey. None of them like to fly, so I spend most of my 'vacations' in Jersey. The weather in San Diego is perfect most of the time. I ride my bike on the boardwalk, play tennis, ultimate frisbee and golf... played football, baseball, basketball and hockey in high school and college...and nothing hurts. "Put me in coach, I'm ready to play." Dabbled in a little stand-up comedy in the '80s, but settled for a successful insurance career for the past 22 years.

After hearing from Jackie B. and Joey D., I took out our high school year book and called an old high school friend. While thumbing through, I saw the picture of Jerry Ragonese, Derek Nardone, Joe Natiello, Paul Krystow, Bruce Heide, Tony Francis and Kevin Mercer...nominees for Mr. Regional...and asked her, "Why wasn't I up there?" She replied, "No one liked you, Carmen."