Greater Seattle Soccer League center badge

Board of Directors

CURRENT Board Members

Nelson Taggart

Chairman of the Board

Nelson loves soccer and still plays with his 0-40 team in the GSSL. He's passionate about all things soccer, the buildup, the managers, the players, the reffing and simply wants to give back what the GSSL has offered to him over the past 20 years. 

Michaela Gould

Finance Chair

Michaela joined the GSSL Board in late 2022. A CPA with more than 35 years of finance, accounting, and IT experience, she recently retired from her position as Controller at Ashley House, a nonprofit that serves the medically fragile community. As a GSSL Board member, Michaela desires to utilize her background to help strengthen and grow the league and its operations.

Michaela’s soccer journey began when Title IX was implemented, which added a girls’ team at her high school. No one had any experience, including the coach, who had been reassigned from the football team. 10+ years later she began playing in the WSWSA (Washington State Women’s Soccer Association) over-30 league. She continues to play in the legacy women’s divisions from that league, which are now managed by GSSL. Michaela also served on the WSWSA Board as Treasurer. 

Outside of soccer, she enjoys doing anything active- bicycle touring and skiing are some of her favorites, and she is loving her newest role-as Grandma!

Tom Mailhot

Operations Chair

Tom started playing soccer in 1976 when some guys from his company decided to form the Little Feet team and play in the lower divisions of what in those days was the combined WSSA/GSSL. They had maybe three guys who had played before, and the rest were enthusiastic if not talented. 

In 1980, he also started playing for an over-30 team coached by De-En Lang. They had practice every Saturday morning, and he credits Mr. Lang for helping him develop whatever skills he has today. 

The team (Ravenna Volvo, Goombah's Tavern, MicroAge, Lang Financial, and finally FC Lang) is still playing in the Over-65 and over-68 divisions (and still practicing every Saturday morning). Some of the guys have played together for over 30 years.

He's retired and now enjoys traveling around the world for masters tournaments. The GSSL has made soccer a lifetime sport and he wants to help keep that going.

 

Linda Yasutake

Board Member

Linda Yasutake has been involved in soccer for many years now. Linda’s love of the game began as a small child, but started playing seriously as an adult. She has played indoor soccer, futsal, and outdoor soccer for the last 17 years or so, yet is always marveling how one never stops learning the game. Linda has played and continues to play on a Men’s Over 40 team in GSSL for the last 11 years and is an avid supporter of the Sounders and the USWNT. She organizes a futsal game on Bainbridge Island twice a week and also helps organize other pick-up game opportunities on the Island.

In addition, Linda has been involved in coaching and nurturing youth players on several recreational and select teams over the years in Poulsbo and Bainbridge Island, culminating with the local high school boys’ and girls’ soccer teams over the last two years. Linda was involved as an assistant GM at a local indoor soccer facility. While there, she managed several teams – men’s, women’s (including starting a beginner level league for women) and kids team.

Linda’s mission has been to bring her passion of soccer to other’s lives as well as teaching life through soccer. 

Edward Lu

Marketing Chair

Edward Lu is a life-long soccer lover. He played in varsity and intramurals; and he currently plays GSSL men's open D1/D2 on Sundays and subs whenever possible on the weekdays.

Having grown up immersed in the world of soccer, Edward is now eager to take their passion to the next level by applying for a position on the GSSL Board. With a lifelong love for the sport and years of experience playing varsity in high school, intramurals in college and now GSSL Men's league on Sundays, he understands the transformative power of soccer in building strong communities.

Whenever moving to a new city; for school, internships or permanent jobs, Soccer was always the universal language that helped him make friends in every new community. He is enthusiastic about contributing to GSSL's mission by helping shape policies, enhancing the soccer experience, and fostering inclusivity.

With a background in Management Consulting (MBB) and Data Science, he has a proven track record of strategically transforming one of the biggest fortune 50 companies. As an analytical thinker with a strong commitment to the mission of GSSL, he can effectively fulfill the board's responsibilities and contribute to the Board's strategic direction.

Jason Kelly

Governance Chair

Jason Kelly plays and manages an O-30 Men's D2 team, with 10+ years in GSSL. Jason has 18 years as a leader in the tech sector. His blend of professional and soccer experience equips him to drive collaboration on and off the field.

With over 18 years of experience in the tech industry, specializing in cloud infrastructure and software engineering, and having held leadership roles at major corporations like IBM, SAP, and Workday, Jason has developed a unique blend of skills that allows him to bridge the gap between finance, technology, and non-technical areas. Being a passionate soccer player since childhood, with countless leagues, tournaments, and competitions under his belt (primarily as a goalkeeper), he believes his blend of professional acumen and love for the game equips him perfectly to excel as a GSSL board member. His career has been a vibrant blend of work in large companies, alongside exciting endeavors with startups and non-profit volunteering. Leveraging his multifaceted background, Jason is confident that he can bring innovative solutions and leadership to the GSSL board, bridging gaps and fostering collaboration that enhances the game for everyone involved.

Daniel Deresh

Board Member

Daniel Deresh has played in O-40s and O-50s. He represented the US at the international competition. Currently, he is refereeing all different levels of competition in the Seattle area, as well as coaching youth.

Daniel has over 45 years of soccer playing, coaching, and refereeing experience. In addition, he spent over 20 years playing soccer on the East Coast, most of it in OTHSL, which is one of the largest adult soccer leagues in the country. Daniel played in D1 - Open, O-30s, O-40s and O-50s. After he moved to Seattle, I've played in O-40s and O-50s.

Danny Eng

Board Member

Danny Eng officiated soccer with GSSL for about 20 years. Within the last year, he has done referee assessments on behalf of GSSL.

Danny has been a referee for 25 years with the East King County Soccer Referee Association.  In addition, he also officiated soccer at the collegiate level for about 15 years. He also officiated soccer with GSSL for about 20 years. Within the last year, Danny has done referee assessments on behalf of GSSL. The goal of the assessment is to improve the quality of refereeing for the "beautiful game". He appreciates your votes.

Russell Eberts

Board Secretary

Russell Eberts currently plays for and captain the Rainier Riot FC O-30 team. He served on the Board of Directors of DiscNW and has worked with BoDs at many non-profits in Seattle. He currently works at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

Russell has experience working at multiple non-profits in the Greater Seattle Area, in both fundraising and administration. He served on the Board of Directors for DiscNW, the premier youth and adult ultimate frisbee organization in Seattle, where he worked closely with the Executive Director and multiple stakeholders. He also has experience working with a number of Boards of Directors in the Seattle area. He is currently an administrator at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and previously worked at the Seattle Symphony.

He currently plays for, manages, and captains the Rainier Riot FC O-30 team, and played for the Rainier Riot Open Division team from 2013-2021. They have won a total of eight championships during that time, and he continues to work closely with the captain of the Open Division team, who has been coaching at Chief Sealth International High School since 2020, and won the Metro Division Coach of the Year in 2022. 

Russell is passionate about the beautiful game and believes that there are many exciting opportunities to grow the community here in the Greater Seattle Area, and GSSL is in a prime position to make the most of those opportunities. Not only does he have extensive experience in the non-profit sector here in Seattle, Russell also has a passion for the game and has worked closely with players, coaches, and captains in GSSL for the last ten years.

Rudy Lim

Board Member

Soccer positively shaped Rudy Lim’s youth and continues to profoundly affect his life. Now, Rudy Lim is actively playing and serving as the IBIS Club team manager for 8 consecutive GSSL seasons, in the men 40’s.

Rudy Lim appreciates the opportunity to leverage his corporate experience, channel his passion for the soccer and “can do” mindset to meaningfully impact GSSL mission & goals. He has been a proud GSSL member for a couple years as a player, subsequently Rudy got nominated by teammates as the club manager for IBIS Soccer Club, playing in Over40’s Men D4 and has been in this role for over 8 consecutive seasons. Throughout this period, not only has he enjoyed learning club managerial ropes, but Rudy also grew to appreciate the importance of GSSL and its impact in the “soccer” game we all are passionate about.

Professionally, Rudy has worked at 8 public companies, including a Dow30 company, where Rudy served in multiple steering committees and was part of the executive leadership team.  Now, Rudy is at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as their Chief Procurement Officer.

Rudy moved to Seattle 27yrs+ ago and became a proud Husky alum. Later, Rudy earned dual MBAs from Haas Berkeley and Columbia Business School. In addition to his engineering background, Rudy is also a licensed Professional Engineer and certified Six Sigma.

As a proud father of twin girls age 10+, Rudy stays engaged in causes for children, especially those that incorporate his love of soccer.

Stefan Wick

DEIA Chair

Stefan Wick is a lifelong soccer player, manager, referee and fan. He started playing in 1980 for his hometown club in Germany. He has been playing in the GSSL with ISC Gunners since 2014, where he manages the O40 and O50 teams.

Stefan Wick is a lifelong soccer player, manager, organizer, fan, referee, and enthusiast. Born and raised in Germany, he started playing in 1980 for his hometown club in Hamburg.

He moved to the Pacific Northwest to work for Microsoft and joined the ISC Gunners in 2014 to play in the Greater Seattle Soccer League. Since then, he has been playing and managing the O40 and O50 teams. Stefan and his teams also enjoy playing indoor soccer and futsal. They participate yearly in international tournaments held in Europe, where they compete against other teams from around the world.

Stefan is looking forward to the being a GSSL board member and helping enhance the soccer experience for our community.