Skip to content

Longtime Kelowna volleyball coach set to earn lifetime recognition

A coach from Penticton Secondary is also receiving an award
web1_240418-kcn-bc-high-school-awards_1
Okanagan Mission Secondary coach, teacher, and athletic director is set to receive the Honour Award from BC School Sports.

A Kelowna coach is set to earn the highest form of recognition at the BC School Sports (BCSS) awards next month.

Okanagan Mission Secondary’s (OMS) volleyball Paul Thiessen was named the recipient of the Honour Award on Thursday, Apr. 11.

“This award is presented to an individual in recognition of a lifetime of service to school sports,” the release states.

The recipient is an individual who has demonstrated prolonged and distinguished service to BC School Sports, their zone, local association, and school. This person has made a significant difference to BCSS and the impact it has on the lives of student-athletes and our member schools.

Thiessen, who’s also a teacher at OMS, has coached at the school for more than 30 years and is also the school’s athletic director.

In 2021, he earned the BC School Sports Merit Award.

Additionally in the Okanagan, Penticton Secondary coach is one of four coaches to receive the Citation of Excellence in Coaching.

“The recipient of this award guides student-athletes to success through the philosophy of fair play and sportsmanship for a sustained period, while displaying values consistent with BCSS and school sport,” states the release.

“It is such a privilege to celebrate these incredible individuals,” said BCSS executive director, Jordan Abney. “They have dedicated so much to supporting school sports and changing the lives of hundreds if not thousands of student-athletes. They are truly the very best of the school sports community.”

The awards ceremony is set to take place on Friday, May 10 in Kelowna.

READ MORE: ‘Small hands, big hearts’: Kelowna students help disabled Ukrainian boy

READ MORE: ‘I wanted to give back’: Kelowna woman honoured for ALS volunteer work



Jordy Cunningham

About the Author: Jordy Cunningham

Hailing from Ladner, B.C., I have been passionate about sports, especially baseball, since I was young. In 2018, I graduated from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops with a Bachelor of Journalism degree
Read more