photo by Brie Cohen
Thunder defenseman Derek Docken helps out Ellen Merkouris with a Wii skiing game while Thunder defenseman Robbie Vannelli wrestles around with Caleb Merkouris at the Merkouris home in rural Conger. Ryan and Janelle Merkouris are a host family to the two defensemen and their children, Caleb and Ellen, love to play with the two hockey players.
Feeling right at home
Published Saturday, November 29, 2008
Photo by Brie Cohen
Thunder defenseman Derek Docken plays with John Deere toys with Caleb Merkouris in the basement of the Merkouris home. The two were pretending to farm.
Photo by Brie Cohen
Ellen Merkouris goofs around with Robbie Vannelli and laughs as she steals his hat off his head in the basement of the Merkouris home.
It’s certainly not you typical family but it has developed into one for Albert Lea Thunder players Robbie Vannelli and Derek Docken and their host family Ryan and Janelle Merkouris.
When Ryan first approached Janelle with the idea of hosting two Junior “A” hockey players, she wasn’t all that up for it, but now she says it’s one of the best things the couple has done.
“When Ryan came to me earlier this summer and asked me to do that, my first answer, to be honest with you was, ‘No way, I’m not going to have two 18-year-old boys in my house,’” Janelle said. “But he talked me into it and now that we’ve done it, I’m so glad we’ve done it.”
The Merkouris live in rural Conger and have two young children — Caleb who is 6 and Ellen who is 2 — so there was some concern about how the players would respond to living with children. Vannelli and Docken have become like older brothers to Caleb and Ellen.
“The first thing they say when they walk in the house is, ‘Where’s Derek and Robbie? Are Derek and Robbie home? Where’s Derek and Robbie?’” Janelle said.
Whether it’s playing Nintendo Wii or wrestling around in the basement of the Merkouris’ home Vannelli and Docken enjoy hanging out with the children.
“They’re always doing something,” Docken said. “They have so much energy. How can you not like that. She’s always got a smile on her face and Caleb always wants to wrestle.”
It’s hard to imagine that Docken and Vannelli have much energy after their schedule. Vannelli has class two days a week at Riverland Community College in the morning and then heads to hockey practice at the City Arena from 1 to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. After practice Docken and Vannelli return to the Merkouris home just when Caleb and Ellen are getting back from school.
Usually Caleb and Ellen will make their way to the basement to play with Docken and Vannelli. Caleb and Docken will play farm on the carpet while Vannelli and Ellen try to play Wii. Caleb will run from Docken and start wrestling with Vannelli — giggling the whole time.
“I’ve always been the baby of the family,” Vannelli said. “It’s been nice being like an older brother.”
Going from suburban St. Paul to a 6-acre hobby farm in Conger has certainly been a change of scenary for Vannelli whose family lives in Mendota Heights.
“It’s been a little different,” Vannelli said. “But I’ve got some thick skin, I can take it.”
Docken’s family lives in Northfield and he likes not being too far away from home. Janelle says Docken doesn’t travel home very often, she suspects he likes living with the host family.
“Ryan and Janelle have made me feel right at home with everything,” Docken said. “The adjustment has been really smooth.”
The team has rules in place for players on curfew times and there is little the Merkourises have to worry about with Docken and Vannelli.
“I think there is a lot of respect from them to us and that’s why I think it’s worked so well,” Ryan said.
While most of their friends are in their freshman year of college living in dorms, Docken and Vannelli have live in the basement of a family’s home. It’s a rare experience, but then again playing junior hockey isn’t a chance most 18-year-olds are afforded.
In exchange for housing and food, Docken and Vannelli pay $300 a month to the team which gets reimbursed to the Merokurises.
The experience for Docken, 18, and Vannelli, 18, isn’t too unlike going away to college. The two share a room in the basement and sleep in bunk beds which has made Docken and Vannelli closer. In fact teammates joke that it’s tough to tell the two apart. Both are defensemen and both drive their parents’ Lincolns around, sometimes they even talk alike.
Docken and Vannelli occupy the basement most of the time and are responsible for keeping the area clean. They have a Wii, XBox and flat screen TV for entertainment, that is when Caleb and Ellen aren’t running around.
For Janelle, it’s a good feeling knowing that she’s helping the community with a new venture.
“It’s just a good experience, the kids love them,” she said. “We go to the games and cheer them on, it’s really fun. It’s really great because it feels like we’re helping the community. For people that work so hard to bring new things in, they have to have the community’s support.”
Vannelli and Docken spend a lot of their time away from the rink out in the community. They both helped out at the Albert Lea Family Y with youth football and have been active with other community ventures.
Still nothing is finer than coming back to the basement of the Merourkis house to hang out with Caleb and Ellen.
“They treat us just like family,” Vannelli said. “It couldnt be much better.”
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