Mike DeRoehn of New Holstein, Wis. was named Kids Persons of the Year by USA Wrestling. The award annually honors a leader who has to made great contributions to Kids wrestling in the United States. From 2006-2011, DeRoehn served as the state coach of the Wisconsin Wrestling Federation, USA Wrestling’s state association. In that role, DeRoehn coached athletes of all ages within the state, including those in the Kids and Cadet age divisions. He worked closely with the state’s Schoolboy/girl and Cadet National Dual Meet teams each year. He was also responsible for running the training camps for Wisconsin’s Cadet and Junior teams in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. In his role as state coach, DeRoehn handled numerous administrative tasks which affected the Kids and Cadet programs in the state and assisted the athletes and their families in many different ways. He remains active with the Wisconsin Wrestling Federation on a volunteer basis as the University Age Level Director. He also owns and is head wrestling coach of World Class Wrestling School, a USA Wrestling chartered club which assists young men and women in developing their wrestling skills, building character and developing positive habits on and off the mat. He has operated the club since 2003, and has working with youth athletes on a year-round basis. His club focuses on folkstyle, freestyle and Greco-Roman, as well as strength, conditioning and positive mentoring activities. In 2010, he was named USA Wrestling Greco-Roman Junior National Coach of the Year. “We send the message through our club, and through the Wisconsin Wrestling Federation that we want to win titles, but developing good citizens and students is the most important thing,†said DeRoehn. DeRoehn enters his second season as the head coach at Lakeland College, a Div. III program located in Sheboygan, Wis. In the 2010-11 season, DeRoehn led the Muskies to their fourth-straight Northern Wrestling Association team title with four champions He led Lakeland to a ninth-place finish at the Great Lakes Regional, hosted by Lakeland, and sent the school's fifth-ever wrestler to Nationals. Prior to coaching at Lakeland, DeRoehn coached at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh for eight years, including six as head coach. “The neat thing, between my club program and my college team, is that I am coaching nearly every age group. It gives me a chance to coach and mentor a broad spectrum. Wrestling is my passion. Working with all these age groups makes it interesting for me. You learn different ways to teach,†said DeRoehn. DeRoehn was an award-winning wrestler at Plymouth State in New Hampshire, where he earned a bachelor's degree in physical education in 2005. He received a master's in educational leadership from UW-Oshkosh in 2009. “It is gratifying getting this award. It comes down to the entire Wisconsin Wrestling Federation, which is reflected in this award. We have great leadership in this state, from chairman Dave Black and our entire board. It all starts there. Our board makes decisions in the best interest of our wrestlers. This also gives me and other leaders the freedom to make a difference in the lives of kids,†said DeRoehn. Kids Person of the Year 1978 - Bill Knapp, New York 1979 - Ken Coover, Kansas 1980 - Gary Hoyt, Nebraska 1981 - Pat Alexander. Washington 1982 - Dave Gliniecki, Washington 1983 - John Spencer, Idaho 1984 - Jerry Opbroek, South Dakota 1985 - Joe Edmonson, Nebraska 1986 - David Rudrud, Wisconsin 1987 - Virgil Moon, Oregon 1988 - Ron Wagner, North Dakota 1989 - Paul Corder, Missouri 1990 - Ron Reichert, Illinois 1991 - Randy Staab, Washington 1992 - Dan Drinkwine, Minnesota 1993 - Mike McCoy, Florida 1994 - Roger Hanson, Idaho 1995 - Norman Osteen, North Carolina 1996 - Kathy Hopkins, Wyoming 1997 - Steve Wachal, Iowa 1998 - Virgil Moon, Oregon 1999 - Frank Rader, North Carolina 2000 - Sue Siar, Pennsylvania 2001 - Paul DeFosse, Rhode Island 2002 - Steve Knipp, Iowa 2003 - Haswell Franklin, Maryland 2004 – Gregory and Leanna Grater, Kansas 2005 – George Anne and Jim Ritter, Nevada 2006 – Bobby DeBerry, Arizona 2007 – R.E. Hartley, New York 2008 – Kevin White, North Dakota 2009 – Trent McCormick, Indiana 2010 – Craig and Diane LaMont, Utah 2011 – Mike DeRoehn, Wisconsin