Josh Fefchak,, (far right, top row) helping coach FVVC 18U Boys team to Silver at 2018 Provincial Championship.

We all have a first memory of volleyball that sticks in our minds well past our teenage years. After all, it’s generally what connects us to others in the volleyball community and why we love the sport so much.

For GLC Solutions intern and University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) player, Josh Fefchak, that memory from the first time he played volleyball in Grade 5 is still fresh in his mind.

“My first memories of playing volleyball were, what is this weird sport, it doesn’t really make any sense,” laughed Fefchak, as he recalled the early days. “You can’t really have a star on the team, like you can with hockey or basketball, which I like, so you really depend on your teammates all the time.”

Those memories that fostered his love for the sport eventually lead him into coaching, first, through helping out at summer camps with MEI’s volleyball program and eventually to the sidelines of the Fraser Valley Volleyball Club with the U18 Boys team as an assistant coach – This team won Silver in the Tier 1, U17/18 Boys division at the recent Provincial Championships.

“I love volleyball and love any time I can be in the gym learning about it and helping others,” Fefchak said. “I love helping players not only with their volleyball skills, but also helping them develop into the young men and women that they’re going to become.”

Fefchak also added, that through coaching, he’s also discovered the analytical side of the sport, which has helped him become a better player on the court for UFV.

And while balancing work and coaching isn’t an easy task, knowing GLC Solutions is supportive to the volleyball community and having a strong cast of supportive co-workers frees up Fefchak to coach during club volleyball season.

“We have such a great network of guys here at GLC and we’re all one team, so, if someone has to leave work to coach volleyball, someone else can handle my tasks if needed,” Fefchak said. “You never feel bad because you know the work you leave behind will be taken care of at a high level, so you never think, ‘Oh I’m leaving my work with this person, I’m a little nervous of how it’s going to go’. Instead, you’re always fully confident that your co-workers will do just as good of a job with the task, which is awesome.”

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Fefchak started working at GLC Solutions two summers ago as part of the company’s internship program, which provides high school (Grade 11 & 12) and postsecondary students real life experience in the IT industry.

And while IT is still fairly new to Fefchak, he has been absorbing information like a sponge since he started with GLC Solutions.

“Coming in to my internship I didn’t really know what to expect. You see internships on TV shows as you’ll be getting coffee and doing things no one wants to do, but at GLC, it’s very different from what I thought an internship was. At GLC, interns are depended on heavily for everyday tasks, projects and support tickets, so it’s not just a laid back, cruise through the summer type of internship. You’re involved with the business every day. You are continuously learning new things, getting designations like Microsoft certifications, and being part of projects, so my first summer was very busy and I learned a lot from it.”

~ Josh Fefchak ~

Fefchak also sees a lot of similarities between the skills he’s learned through coaching/playing volleyball and his everyday tasks at GLC Solutions.

“Skills, such as communication and being clear with what you say and clarifying the information if needed to are similar (in the workplace and on the volleyball court) because if someone gets the wrong message or the message is misunderstood between the two of you, something bad can potentially happen,” Fefchak said. “Coming in with that refined level of communication skills has certainly helped me succeed with GLC Solutions.”

If you would like to learn more about GLC Solutions internship program, visit the internship section of their website and reach out to them to meet for coffee…like Josh Fefchak did two years ago.