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Giving back to the game – and loving it It’s Saturday afternoon and two teams of 9-year-olds are playing baseball. There are two outs in the final inning as the pitcher winds up and heaves a pitch toward home plate. The batter hits the ball straight to first base for an easy out, and the umpire shouts, “That’s the ballgame!” The teams line up at home plate to trade high-fives. When the ump walks off the field and removes his mask, it becomes apparent that he’s barely out of childhood himself. One parent in the stands turns to another and says, “Did you know the umpire is only 13? It’s wonderful how he’s giving back to the game.” That’s one illustration of how teens in sports leagues around Southern California are giving something of themselves to the games they’ve grown up with. Teens and older children are serving as umpires, assistant coaches, field prep helpers, snack bar attendants, and league volunteers. Calling all team members For example, every member of Coach Mike Peterman’s baseball team volunteers to umpire a couple of games for younger teams in Tustin Western Little League. And the umpiring, by the way, is first-rate. Mike gives several reasons for asking his players to do this: “I started umpiring at age 13 back in 1978. I was paid a small amount for umpiring, but found that I was getting much more in terms of self-satisfaction. In addition to learning life lessons of responsibility, decisiveness and working hard, I grew to enjoy the game and the social aspects of interacting with the community. I had the sense that I was giving back to a league that had spent a lot of time teaching me.” The fact that Mike grew up to be a baseball coach himself speaks volumes about the positive nature of his youth baseball experience. “I wanted the kids in my travel baseball program to learn the same lessons. Now that the kids have received a taste of what it’s like and have a newfound respect for what umpires go through in a game, believe it or not, they bug me constantly for more games to participate in.” And Mike’s players don’t just umpire. He said, “A few work in the snack bar. Some have worked on preparing the fields. Last year, and the two before it, they were required to mentor a younger player by attending two of his games and giving him positive encouragement along with a few baseball tips that would help improve his game.” Everyone wins The net effect is that the sports community benefits from having player mentors that the younger children can relate to. The older players also learn much, especially through umpiring. “We often go over the difficult calls they encountered in the previous weeks and I use that time to teach them the different aspects of the game that are not always evident when you’re playing,” says Mike. The only downside for the boys is the occasional contentious parent or coach: “It’s one problem that will always be there when you’re playing a competitive game...Our kids are learning to tune most of that out.” The teens, first as unpaid volunteers and then as paid umps, fill a much-needed role, according to Mike. Many leagues are “finding it ever more difficult to find volunteers willing to devote the many hours necessary to run a baseball program. Volunteerism doesn’t necessarily mean that you volunteer your time. You can also volunteer to contribute financially as a way to support the community programs.” After two unpaid games, Mike’s players can choose to continue as paid Little League umpires, getting as much as $30 a game and relieving league parents of the obligations to be umpires themselves. My 13-year-old daughter also started umpiring for the first time this year. I initially tried to discourage her from learning to be an ump, thinking it would distract from her role as a player on her own softball team. But instead, it revealed a growing maturity and sense of responsibility. She asked me: “Being an umpire would look good on a resume, don’t you think?” And she enjoyed the prospect of getting paid after gaining experience. “I could get an easier job at a yogurt shop, but softball is something I really care about,” she said. Even though she gets a regular check now for umpiring, she still wants to give the young players the best sports experience possible. Those young players might even grow up one day to volunteer their own time to the sport. Mike Peterman echos this sentiment as he describes the boys who umpire on his baseball club: “I’m sure they also like a little extra spending money for the weekends, but what they really enjoy is participating in the game with the kids.” Parents step in Sports parents do a lot of giving. We give our time cheering on the teams, preparing the fields, and helping the coaches, not to mention manning the snack bars and running the leagues. We give our money and our patience. So it shouldn’t be surprising that some of our teens see what we are willing to invest in the games, and decide to give back a little, too. It’s a big moment in a youth’s life, when they realize that they can contribute to the development of younger players just by becoming involved in new dimensions of a game they already love. It’s bigger than hitting a home run or winning the game with a last-second score. It’s valuable job experience, too. By giving their time to the sports they love, they gain real-world job experience in a safe environment. They gain the respect and admiration of their parents and peers. Eventually, they might gain a paycheck as well. David Kries writes from Mission Viejo. |
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