Volunteers (coaches, board members, host families and umpires)
It is amazing when you realize just how many volunteer hours go into running Little Leagues, Summer Wood Bat Leagues, tournaments and everything that goes on with baseball and softball. If it weren’t for volunteers we wouldn’t have youth sports. The thing that people don’t always see or remember is that many volunteers don’t have kids on the teams or the leagues. They might have at one time but they have decided to keep giving back long after their kids are done.
Coaches
I’m a strong believer that if you aren’t willing to volunteer and put in the time to coach or assist with a team that you shouldn’t complain to or about the coach. Volunteer coaches may not have the most knowledge but if they are willing to put in the time to help run a team then they sure as hell better be respected for it.
Coaches can take a lot of abuse and that is frustrating for me. Local leagues in both baseball and softball were absolutely begging for coaches at all levels because no one was willing to put in the time and volunteer. That is why I do my best to support anyone who is willing to put in the time and do their best.
Board Members
Putting together rosters, schedules, tournaments, getting gear ordered and handed out, keeping fields playable and so much more couldn’t be done with out a ton of man hours put in by volunteer board members. The thing about being a board member is that no one sees all the hours you put in, other than your family.
I know board members that work full time and then pretty much work full time for their local league during the season. It can be rough and frustrating at times but after spending time helping to work with a local league I am seeing just how much crap has to be dealt with on a regular basis.
Host Families
Summer leagues and teams, both college wood bat and many minor league, wouldn’t be able to exist if it weren’t for host families. Yes, many host families will get a couple hundred dollars a month to help with food but if you have ever seen how much an 18-22 year old guy eats you know that a few hundred dollars barely covers snacks.
Host families do a lot more than just give young men a place to sleep for the summer, they become their family. This summer I talked with one host parent who has a player staying with them that hasn’t seen his family in almost 2 years because he is from Japan and getting home isn’t easy. His family is his host family this summer. Host families like coaches have the ability to impact lives for years to come.
Umpires.
Being an umpire can suck and being a volunteer (or even a low paid) umpire can sometimes be the worst. Although getting a ball park cheeseburger isn’t a bad thank you. Volunteer umpires don’t have years of training, but what they do have is a love for the game and a desire to give back. So even though I can disagree with an umpire and at times glare and question their calls, but I really do try and be respectful.
As a parent or fan it is easy to mouth off to an umpire but I really hope that people would realize that if those who choose to umpire games decided it wasn’t worth it, it would make playing games almost impossible. There is already a lack of umpires and losing more could spell more trouble to the games.