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Senior Spotlight: Karch Verlanic – Bay Port football, Boy Scouts

BY RICH PALZEWIC
CORRESPONDENT


Daniel “Karch” Verlanic is a senior at Bay Port High School. Karch was a member of the Pirates’ football team this past fall that went 11-1 and also plays baseball. Verlanic moved to Suamico from Anchorage, Alaska, when he was 12 years old and is close to becoming an Eagle Scout. Only four percent of Boy Scouts reach the rank of Eagle.

Name: Daniel Verlanic
Nickname: Karch, Karchie
Sports: football, baseball
Parents: Ellen & Ed
School: Bay Port

How do you pronounce your last name? “It’s Ver-lan-ick.”

Why do people call you Karch? “It’s actually my middle name. My parents wanted us to have unusual names so people would know who we were. I’m named after Karch Kiraly the volleyball player.”

Do you have any siblings? “I have a younger brother named Call. His real name is Tyler, but he goes by his middle name as well.

Talk about what you remember about your Alaska days. “I was actually born in Dallas and stayed there until I was 4, then we moved up to Alaska. I went hunting quite a bit – I killed two bears right before we moved down here – and there was a lot of snow! In the winter it was rough. It was nice in the summer when we could be outside playing at 10:00 at night and the sun was still up!”

Why did you move around? “We moved because of my dad’s job – he works in the railroad industry.”

Do you like Howard-Suamico? “I like where we live a lot more than where we were before – I was pretty spread out from my friends in Alaska. The education is a lot better here as well. The sports have been great, too.”

Talk about your experience with playing football for the Pirates. “It was a lot of fun – we’ve had great coaches and players the past few years, so that was a nice touch. The team camaraderie with the community was really nice, too. Our summer weight-lifting program helped us win back-to-back conference championships.”

What are you hoping for in baseball this spring? “I was the manager last year but I’m a pitcher, so I’m hoping to get some time on the mound. I pitched some for the Legion team last summer.”

How about a sport you wish you would have done? “Rugby sounds like it would have been fun!”

Talk about your Eagle Scout project! “I started Cub Scouts in the first grade and have just continued it all the way through. My Eagle Scout project was planning, raising the money and then getting a new storage shed at Idlewild Park built for the Duck Creek Pop Warner football organization. It’s complete now – I’m just waiting for everything to get approved. That was all in a span of about three years.”

What are your future plans? “I’m not sure quite where I will go to college yet, but I’ve applied to the Naval and Air Force Academies, Purdue, Texas A&M, Michigan and Embry-Riddle in Daytona, Florida – that’s an aeronautical university. I plan to study aerospace or mechanical engineering and becoming a military pilot.”

My dad went to the University of Michigan back in the 50s when tuition was $90 a semester! “Dang!”

Have you ever flown a plane? “Yes! I have about 12 hours of flight time right now. I’ve flown a single-engine, four-person Cessna 172. I need about 50 hours to be able to fly solo and then there are countless hours of ground school.”

What three words best describe you? “Patriotic, passionate, hard-working.”

If you could have lunch with any person, who would it be? “Neil Armstrong – just from him being the first man on the moon. He was also a Navy pilot and Eagle Scout.”

What people have had the most influence on you? “Probably my parents. They have always pushed me to be the best I can be and have taught me a lot of lessons. They’re always there for me.”

Is there a teacher at Bay Port that has influenced you the most? “Instead of saying just one, I would say the whole lot of teachers I’ve had.”

What will you miss most about Bay Port? “I will miss the friends I have made here the most.”

How will Karch Verlanic be remembered at Bay Port? “My teachers would remember me as a hard worker. I will also be remembered as being patriotic and as an aviation nerd.”

Tree house or tiny house? “Tree house.”
Lie on the beach or ski down the slopes? “Both!”
Cats or dogs? “Dogs.”
Vacuum or laundry? “Vacuum.”
Summer or fall? “Both!”

Favorites

Athlete: (Dallas Cowboys player) Jason Witten
Food: steak
Ice cream: Cookie Dough
Phone app: Clash Royal
Color: blue

Notes: suggestions for the Senior Spotlight can be submitted to Rich via email ([email protected]) or by Twitter (@richpalzewic)… all spotlights can be found online at thepress.media. Check out last week’s spotlight on Bay Port’s Brandon Splawski.

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