Charlie Van Kula is the new varsity hockey coach at St. Joseph’s Prep. He replaces David Giacomin who spent 14 seasons behind the Hawks’ bench.
For the past three seasons Van Kula has coached the Hawks’ JV Gray team. He has also served as a varsity assistant and been a coach for the Ed Snider Youth Hockey organization.
A St. Joseph’s Prep graduate, Van Kula was a four-year letter winner as a goaltender for the Hawks before going on to Boston College where he was a student manager apart from a brief stint as a walk on during the 2015-16 season.
Van Kula returned to the Prep in 2018-19 as an Alumni Service Corps member, during which time he served as a Varsity and JV assistant coach. He was a frequent presence at subsequent Prep Hockey summer camps and clinics.
Van Kula has also coached with a variety of the Ed Snider Youth Hockey and Education organization’s programs from 2018-2021. Since 2022 he has been a full-time member of St. Joseph Prep’s Institutional Advancement team.
In addition to his coaching and playing experience, Van Kula has been an on-ice official for the past 17 seasons, including three full-time seasons in the USHL and NAHL. He currently referees at the NCAA Division I and Division III levels.
Rick has worked in print and broadcast journalism for more than 35 years. He's covered golf in one medium or another for more than 30. He is the co-author of the book So You Want to Play Golf with PGA professional Kim Verrecchio and the host of the Women's Golf Report podcast.
Most recently, Rick served as an associate editor for The Mulligan Magazine. He also served as an associate editor for Philadelphia Golf Magazine and New Jersey State Golf from 2004-07.
Rick covered his first LPGA Tour event in 1986 and continues to cover women's golf for various media outlets. High on his bucket list is having the opportunity to one day play in an LPGA Tour pro am.
Rick is also a longtime correspondent for two suburban Philadelphia daily newspapers, the Intelligencer and the Bucks County Courier Times in Doylestown, PA. Over the course of his career he has coverzed a wide variety of sporting events.
He is also a veteran play by play and public address announcer, and handles the PA mic for the nationally ranked Delaware Valley University football program.
Rick is also a longtime contributor to Referee, a magazine devoted to sports officiating. He called his first baseball game at age 13 and continues to umpire softball and baseball today.
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