j Senile Six is known as much for its lack of rough play as it is for its inclusiveness, but that doesn’t prevent history teacher/hockey coaches Erick Dalton ’00 and Cheryl Setchell from having some fun on the ice.
two teams. So town residents were asked to play on an invitation-only basis. The primary link was through the local Watertown Youth Hockey organization, according to Odden. Not only did Watertown Youth Hockey use the Taft rink for its ice time, but faculty children also played for the local teams, forging a two-way bond. “It was a great deal,” Everett recalls. “An hour and fifteen minutes of ice time, good hockey, and they did not have to pay a dime. We probably could have charged them, but they were important to us. They allowed us to have nice numbers on both teams.” It fell to one person over the years—first Odden, then Toby Baker, then Everett and now Heavenrich—to keep things organized. “When Toby Baker left, I inherited it by default,” says Everett, “because we would skate after my JV hockey practice Tuesday night, so I was on the ice and could always be there.” Adds Everett with a laugh, “And ‘organiza-
tion’ was always a loose term. I would make a few calls Sunday afternoon to make sure we had two goalies. If there was one goalie, everyone was mad at me. That was the only hassle of the whole thing.” The rest of the organization consisted of picking teams at the beginning of each skate. As Heavenrich noted, “Because people don’t always show, the teams change over time.” Everett brought yellow pullover “pinnies” to distinguish the two teams, and usually consulted with Heavenrich about the division of players. What everyone involved over the years with Senile Six comments on was that this selection process was essential to the skate’s success. “My goal with Ted was to create equal teams each week, not really pick a better team,” explains Everett. “In doing so, it became clear that the last few picks were often more important than the first picks. The team with the weakest players is hurt more than their stars help.” But be they stronger or
“Tuesday night is sacred… 20 Taft Bulletin Winter 2006