Applauding Youth Sports Officials
Doug Calhoun
Ashland Beacon
Most days, in communities across the Ashland area, courts and fields are filled with
energetic boys and girls. The sidelines and bleachers are crowded with supportive, hopeful
parents, grandparents and siblings. Every season is accompanied by its own sports. Every sport
requires its own coaches. The uniforms change, the equipment varies.
Our area is rich with opportunities for our kids to compete in youth sports. Every sport
requires referees, officials, and umpires. Fortunately, we are blessed with plenty of men and
women who are willing to fill these demanding and rewarding responsibilities. Some are
modestly compensated while others volunteer their evenings and weekends.
Veteran youth official Tim Wallin is a strong example of one of the many altruistic youth
officials we are blessed with right here at home. Wallin began officiating youth sports when he
was eighteen calling youth church basketball games at Oakview Elementary. When he was
twenty-one he was refereeing for the first organization that served grade school basketball
hopefuls at the YMCA. This league eventually became what we know now as the Ashland Youth
Basketball league. Back then, Wallin was handsomely compensated two and a half dollars per
game. Meager pay didn’t deter his love for kids and sports as he is now sixty-eight years old
and still billowing the whistle fifty years later as he continues with the AYBL, middle school and
varsity boys and girls basketball.
Wallin didn’t limit his generosity and talents to basketball. Through the years he has also
served as an umpire in Minor Little league, Major Little League, Little League Softball, and Babe
Ruth Baseball.
Wallin speaks of how rewarding officiating grade school kids can be. “When you ref a
game, especially in grade school, you are helping the coaches teach the players where to stand
in certain situations, such as free throws and in-bound passes.” Wallin’s infectious smile is
evidence that he takes joy in his dual role as referee and coach. One would think that one of the
most prominent complaints that a youth league official would have would be jeers and heckling
from overly competitive parents and other spectators, but Wallin says that the biggest
challenges come from getting in position to make the right call and concentrating on not
becoming a spectator and stepping out of his role as referee. He says that he feels most
rewarded when they smile after making a basket and when they smile back at him when he
emphatically tells them, “Yes, you can do it!”
One parent, Erin Womack, recently took notice of Wallin’s good will when she noted his
treatment of her son Oliver on the court. “I’ve seen Mr.Wallin take time to give a few words of
advice and teach kids at several games so far this season. Their little ears are absorbing what
adults say, and taking time to explain things on their level is so important. Oliver said he (Wallin)
asked him if he was nervous, then explained where his feet should be and what to do after each
foul shot.”
Wallin’s story is an extraordinary example of giving of yourself, going above your calling,
and being an example of kindness in the sometimes challenging world of youth sports. But, our
area is fortunate to have lots of “Tim Wallin’s” with great hearts and noble intentions as they
serve our kids. The next time you attend a youth sporting event, return the kindness and take a
second to shake a referee or an umpire’s hand and thank them for their generosity and
dedication. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to do this in front of your child so they can see that the men
and women with the whistles around their necks enforcing rules, keeping order, and instructing
are partners with you in building quality athletes.
