DE PERE, Wis.— Tanner Newton has been coming to the De Pere Ice Arena since he was 3-years-old. To this day, hockey remains his favorite sport. As he winds down his high school career, those around him recognize what he brings to the arena and beyond.

“He's an absolute charm of a person,” said John Coppo, De Pere varsity hockey head coach. “To see him grow up and become the young man that he is has been an absolute treat.”

During a recent practice, the senior center impressed Coppo with his leadership. Some of Newton’s younger teammates weren’t working with enough intensity, so Newton asked his coach to address the team.

“I just really stressed to the guys that this isn’t an individual effort,” said Newton. “For high school hockey, it takes a whole team effort to get far and win games. I just really wanted to stress that.”

The team captain is often described as kind and likable, but he isn’t afraid to get rough on the ice either.

“He has a little bit of feistiness about him but he leaves it on the ice very nicely,” said Coppo. “When the battle’s over, he’s the first to shake hands.”

Another place he goes when he steps off the ice is the football field.

Newton helped De Pere win their first conference championship since 2015. The defensive back missed football his junior year due to COVID-19 scheduling conflicts. He came back strong as a senior.

“He’s always trying to make jokes. He’s a nice kid and he always gets his stuff done whether it's on the field or in the classroom,” said teammate and friend Jack Jorgensen.

In the classroom, Newton maintained an impressive 3.96 GPA. He loves business classes and hopes to run his own someday.

“I’ve always been interested in the business side of things,” said Newton. “Going into freshman year, I took a few business classes and just fell in love with the idea of business.”

Tricia Gross has taught Newton since his freshman year. She said he possesses limitless talent.

“He is just the whole package,” said Gross. “He does it all with effort, with a good work ethic and he’s just a kind soul. You see Tanner, and you know he’s going to say hi no matter what and it doesn’t matter who you are. He’ll say hi to a stranger walking down the street.”

Newton also contributes to the local community. His efforts through D.R.E.A.M. Team (Drug Resistance Equals Achieving More) helped keep kids engaged in positive activities.

“I tried to put on events on Friday or Saturday nights like dodgeball or an open gym,” said Newton. “It’s just a way to keep people from going out and doing bad things and promoting drug resistance.”

As part of the ''Do Something Special Club,'' Newton and his football teammates cleaned up their school’s bleachers after games. They even did it for an away game, cleaning the bleachers of their opponent.

“It was Tanner who kind of led the whole thing,” said Gross. “A proud mom moment, even though he’s not mine.”

As for next year, Newton is weighing his college options. His ultimate goal is to run a business but he left the possibility for more hockey open down the road as well.

Dec. 2 Editor's Note: John Coppo's name has been udpated to reflect the correct spelling.