Notes from Town Square: Officiating youth sports can build character

Youth sports offer many different benefits to not only the young people participating, but to the young adults that mentor and officiate.

Building character in young adults is a culmination of important life lessons and officiating can be a great way to help develop character. 

Young adults, as officials, learn to be confident in tense situations, think and react quickly on their feet, and they begin to assume more responsibility in their life as they schedule to work and earn an income. 

Being an official is also a mentor role to the participants playing sports and those in the audience watching the events.  Green River Parks and Recreation is very proud to offer several different youth sports programs to the community and are also proud to be able to hire young adults to officiate and oversee the games. Many times these officials are still in school and are juggling homework, their work schedule, outside activities, and maintaining a social life where they learn to prioritize and make decisions that impact each of these areas.

Becoming an official is a huge responsibility and not an easy task. Officiating can be trying for anybody, but it’s especially tough for young adults just learning how to take a leadership role. Throughout a season, an official will learn a lot about the game they are responsible for and about themselves and they will gain a better understanding of the rules and be able to pass that knowledge and enjoyment of the game on to the participants. 

In this capacity, the official becomes a leader and the person that the participants can look up to. 

We find that young adults, who officiate or work, hold themselves to higher standards, often participate in other activities outside of school, and tend to keep higher grade point averages in school. The Green River Parks and Recreation Department offers a variety of different youth sports programs that depend on and encourage the young adults within the community to become involved and make a difference. There are many opportunities available to become a youth sports official in the parks and recreation department. To get involved in youth sports, be an official, start a new career, or just volunteer, then stop by the recreation center or give us a call to find out what opportunities are available.