Chris Sichel keeps his eye on the ball, both literally and figuratively. He’s executive director of Star/Pal, a nonprofit youth organization formed in 1997 when the Sports Training, Academics & Recreation group merged with the Police Athletic League.

Star/Pal’s softball, sailing, golf and other sports, arts and education programs all are designed to keep kids off the streets and out of trouble. The group’s summer softball and baseball leagues alone give more than 800 kids a healthy activity. “We’re engaging kids four or five times a week for several hours each time,” he says.

Under Sichel, Star/Pal completed a year-long $1.3 million fund-raising effort and will break ground in October on a 5,400-square-foot facility in Colina Park. “The community is heavily populated with East African refugees and there’s nothing here for them,” says Sichel, 36. The center will open in February or March 2004 and offer violence prevention classes and other activities.

Overseeing such programs is just part of Sichel’s job. He is a civilian commanding officer for the San Diego Police Department. His after-work activities keep him focused on his family. He is a coach for his son’s La Mesa Little League team. Sichel is a husband, the father of three, a churchgoer and a participant in community work.

He is a member of the San Diego Rotary Club and the United Way Speakers’ Bureau. He co-chairs the Share Super Run, an annual 5K and 10K that benefits Star/Pal and other charities. A graduate of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Sichel is a nationally certified recreation therapist.

What drives him, he says, is his desire to give kids a chance. “I hate seeing wasted or lost potential.”

— Sarah Z. Sleeper