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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Wednesday, August 20, 2008 Little League depends on adults By Julie Muhlstein Herald Columnist No matter what else they do in life, 13 boys on Mill Creek Little League's All-Star team will never forget the summer of 2008. They've made it to the top of their game, to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa., where on Tuesday they beat Jeffersonville, Ind., 3-2. It's a good bet that Alex Jondal will someday be telling his kids about the day he sent a game-winning hit deep into left field. Most Little League players never make it to the World Series, but they, too, remember. I was recently surprised when my 21-year-old shared baseball tales with his 9-year-old brother, who played this spring on a Nationals team with the North Everett Little League. My older son, an ace guitarist more interested in the arts than in sports, bailed out of organized baseball by age 12. Since then, he hasn't talked much about his Little League years. Still, on the way to watch a game this spring at Everett's Phil Johnson Ballfields, he told his kid brother that all those times sitting in a dugout with teammate-friends are among his very best childhood memories. He never won a World Series game, but he won something that he carries with him every day. I guess that's why, every year in the dead of winter, I sign my younger son up for baseball. Hundreds of parents all over Snohomish County do the same thing, even knowing that the months to come will bring long practices and games in wet, cold weather before the sun finally comes out for the season's last few games. That's what most parents do -- just sign up and show up. Little League, though, involves adult volunteers putting in countless hours of planning, scheduling, bookkeeping, fundraising, recruiting coaches, maintaining fields and doing jobs most players' parents never think about. Scott Murphy of Everett has shouldered many of those tasks for two years in his position as president of North Everett Little League. He's stepping down after this year, along with people holding a number of other board positions in the league. If the program is to continue as it has for decades, volunteers will need to step up, he said. "It's time for somebody else to take the reins," said Murphy, whose 12-year-old son Kevin played in the league's Majors this year and was on North Everett Little League's All-Stars. The league's open board positions include vice president of baseball, treasurer, safety officer and a coaching-training coordinator. Board positions are elected each year, Murphy said. "We've just had a heck of a time over the last couple months getting people to step up," he said. The positions are all volunteer. Murphy said the volunteer pool has been reduced as player registrations have fallen over the past two years. That's due to competition from others sports, including soccer, hockey and lacrosse; kids joining select teams; and demographics that have shifted the population of young families away from north Everett. Fewer kids bring fewer volunteers, he said. In addition to board positions, more than 100 adults are needed as coaches, managers, assistant coaches, umpires and team parents. The league, which was in financial trouble several years back, now has a surplus, thanks to longtime sponsors, an AquaSox parking fundraiser, player registrations, concession proceeds and sound management, Murphy said. When kids are ready to play ball, what's needed are adults willing to pitch in. And what's true for North Everett Little League is undoubtedly the case in other Little League organizations. Those Mill Creek winners are helping kids all over Snohomish County by shining a spotlight on their sport. "It's a big commitment. We need people who believe strongly in the program and are willing to put the time in -- probably more time than people think," Murphy said. "It's really easy to sign up and bring your kids if somebody else is doing everything." Columnist Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460 or muhlstein@heraldnet.com. Little League needs volunteers North Everett Little League is in need of volunteer board members and other volunteers for its 2009 season. For information, call league president Scott Murphy at 206-473-5820.

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