‘Helping People Is An Easy Call’: The Story of UMPS CARE Charities

 

UMPS CARE Charities, founded through the compassion of Major League Baseball Umpires, provides financial, in-kind, and emotional support for America’s youth and families in need. The 501(c)(3) charity focuses on three main efforts:

1) Major League Baseball experiences for children awaiting adoption and at-risk young in mentoring programs.

2) Build-a-Bear Workshop experiences for children with cancer and other serious illnesses.

3) College scholarships for young adults who were adopted later in life.

The UMPS CARE mission puts into action its established creed, “Helping People Is an Easy Call.” Through the youth-based programs, professional umpires enrich the lives of at-risk youth and children coping with serious illness by providing memorable baseball experiences. Through the scholarship initiatives, they offer financial support to children adopted later in life as well as current and former members of the military.

The Beginning: Helping Hands

UMPS CARE Charities started off, in part, as the Helping Hands Fund in 1999. A number of umpires lost their jobs in a negotiation strategy that year, and the fund was created to help out colleagues in financial distress. It was a way for umpires to give back to one of their own in a time of need.

In 2005, however, the group — led by Ted Barrett, Jim Reynolds, Larry Young, and Gary Darling — started looking at expanding its outreach. A conversation with former MLB Commissioner Fay Vincent convinced the umpires to investigate other avenues for giving back. That year also saw the first of the now-annual fundraiser, the Golf Classic, which raised $5,000.

At the same time, Young was in the process of completing the onerous paperwork involved with becoming an official 501(c)(3) charity. During the 2006 umpires union meeting, the charity, now called UMPSCARE, was voted as the official charity of MLB umpires. Young focused on the detail work: Articles of Incorporation, Letter of Exemption, Arizona Charitable Registration, By-Laws, Arizona Foreign Corporation Disclosure, etc.

The search for a new focal point continued as well, and soon attention centered on a charity called BLUE for Kids.

BLUE for Kids

BLUE for Kids got its genesis in 2004 with MLB umpire Marvin Hudson. Samuel Dearth, a former minor-league umpire with Hudson, asked Hudson if he could provide tickets to a game for him and his “little” in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters (BBBS) program. Hudson happily complied and his entire crew greeted the pair for a game and provided a VIP experience.

The following year, each of the umpires in Hudson’s crew had moved to a different crew and wanted to recreate the same experience. So Hudson and Dearth reached out to BBBS programs in various MLB cities. “We weren’t really doing it a lot, just occasional weekends,” explained Dearth. But Hudson and his fellow umps, including Ted Barrett, Mark Wegner, and Mike DiMuro, pushed forward.

In 2006, the group incorporated BLUE for Kids. Around three or four different crews were involved by that time, and the tentacles kept spreading as umpires moved on to new crews. The organization reached out to the Dave Thomas Foundation that year and started the ticket program’s focus that remains to this day: kids waiting for adoption.

The group also introduced a new charitable event in 2006, hospital visits with Build-a-Bear Workshops. An umpire crew and the local team’s mascot would descend upon a hospital with a full Build-a-Bear Workshop for kids with cancer and other serious illnesses. The group’s first hospital visit was at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, and they did another five that year, nine the following year, and it continued to grow from there.

Coming Together

With UMPSCARE now an official 501(c)(3) charity and the official charity of MLB umpires — and with Fay Vincent’s recommendation urging them forward — these two groups started talks about merging and combining resources. And in 2009, UMPSCARE (formerly Helping Hands) and BLUE for Kids merged to form UMPS CARE Charities, with the BLUE Crew ticket program and BLUE for Kids hospital program. Samuel Dearth was installed as the combined charity’s first executive director.

Darling was excited about the opportunity. “The merger got us all pulling in the same direction,” he said, “and it automatically gave us our programs to get behind.” Darling, Young, Hudson, Reynolds, and DiMuro formed the backbone of the organization and soon focused everyone on moving forward.

Today, said Darling, “About 99 percent of the umpires are involved in some fashion, from providing tickets and the meet and greet, to participating in the hospital visits, to playing in or sponsoring the golf tournaments. It’s really amazing how much everyone’s come together.” And with the charity well established, new umpires coming to the big leagues are jumping in with both feet, making for an even stronger charity every single year.

UMPS CARE Programs

As outlined at the start, UMPS CARE Charities focuses on three main programs; two were already in full force at the merger, with the third to come into existence shortly after.

BLUE Crew Ticket Program

The program that started the original BLUE for Kids charity, the ticket program provides a special day for kids waiting for adoption — a reminder that special days are still possible and an opportunity for bonding between the youth and mentors. Depending on demand, the program provides experiences for kids in multiple stadiums each weekend throughout the entire MLB season.

Each BLUE Crew Ticket VIP experience includes great seats to the ballgame, a goody bag of “all things baseball,” and the unique opportunity to step onto the field for a souvenir baseball and photo. The baseball experience is designed to strengthen relationships of at-risk youth and adult caregivers.

Since the program started in 2006, MLB umpires have welcomed more than 6,000 guests to games across the country, with great results. “This was the highlight of our activities together,” said one Big Brother in Seattle, while a Big Sister in Colorado reported, “It’s so cool that you are able to provide special opportunities like this. We had a really great time!”

BLUE for Kids Hospital Program

The BLUE for Kids Hospital Program remains one of the main programs for UMPS CARE Charities and a favorite of many of the umps. Begun in 2006, the charity held events at 13 children’s hospitals during the 2016 regular season and then hosted a final event during the World Series.

The BLUE for Kids hospital program brings a crew of major-league umpires to the bedside of children with life-threatening illnesses, and they don’t come empty-handed. Each crew brings a Build-a-Bear Workshop experience right to the hospital room!

While a hospital stay can be a frightening time for children and their families, the BLUE for Kids program lifts the spirits of all involved. Children outfit stuffed teddy bears, puppies, or monkeys while sharing high-fives and words of encouragement with the BLUE for Kids crew. When available, the home-team mascot tags along, making it a fun and memorable day.

Through this program UMPS CARE has delivered 1,200 to 1,400 bears annually, and during the 2015 season UMPS CARE put its 100,000th bear into a child’s hands since the program’s inception.

“Being able to possibly make a contribution and a difference for a day, or just a few moments, by putting a smile on someone’s face … it’s an honor and a privilege,” said Jim Wolf after an event in 2015. “The kids are so great, and courageous.”

“This gives us a moment to step back, put everything in perspective and see what’s really important,” Chad Fairchild told MLB.com after a 2016 event. “It’s a great day. Sometimes you feel helpless, but being here, you give back a little bit.” The patients and their families, no doubt, would argue it’s more than just “a little bit.”

UMPS CARE All-Star Scholarship

The UMPS CARE All-Star Scholarship, which debuted in 2010, was the brainchild of Jim Reynolds. “It was definitely something he was passionate about,” recalled Darling. For most parents, they start saving for their child’s college education at birth. For those generous souls who adopt a child later in life — say, 15 or 16 — the cost of college can be an even greater burden. That’s why UMPS CARE Charities partnered with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption for the scholarship program.

All-Star Scholarships are open to children adopted at the age of 10 or older to provide increased opportunities for advanced education. Each year one student will be selected to receive the All-Star Scholarship. This student will be eligible to receive up to $7,500 annually to go toward tuition, books, and other college-related expenses. In 2016 a total of $30,000 in scholarship funding was awarded to the multiple recipients still in school.

The year 2016 also saw a major milestone in the program: the first two graduates! Both reflected on the scholarship after their graduation. “This scholarship has been absolutely invaluable to me,” said 2011 recipient Josh Perrin. “The financial support from the All-Star scholarship gave me the opportunity to fully focus on my academics. The community support from UMPS CARE Charities was just as valuable. … I have felt nothing but genuine support from my umpires family.”

2012 recipient Candace “Zoe” Cottom commented on the importance of the scholarship to her journey. “Attending Butler had been my dream since I was about 12 years old,” she said. “Unfortunately, it is a very expensive school so my chances of being able to afford it were slim. But once I found out I got the scholarship, I knew I could make my dream happen.” The umpires continued to support her throughout her college years as well. She related how umpire Ted Barrett and his wife, Tina, sent her multiple care packages at college and how excited she was to go to a game and meet them. “They are two of the most gracious, generous, and caring people I’ve met. And it is because of people like them that I’ve had the opportunities I’ve had. I feel that it is both my duty and my privilege to give back to others so that they may succeed as well.”

Family Care Program

Beyond those three main programs, UMPS CARE Charities also remains true to its original mission and core values, providing a “helping hand” to colleagues in need, including retired and minor-league umpires and the clubhouse attendants who cared for the umpire rooms.

Fund Raising

None of these programs are free, and UMPS CARE Charities continues thanks to its caring corporate sponsors and legion of supporters and volunteers. The charity also runs a number of fundraisers throughout the year, including:

• UMPS CARE Golf Classic, which includes a pre-event social, live auction, awards dinner, and the chance to golf with MLB and MiLB umpires.
• 100-Hole Golf Marathon, an endurance event where MLB and MiLB umpires and supporters golf 100 holes in one day to raise money.
• UMPS CARE Online Auction, with autographed memorabilia from some of baseball’s top players, premium MLB and UMPS CARE apparel, and one-of-a-kind “Experience Packages” at many of the minor- and major-league ballparks across the country.
• And other events throughout the country, including a bowling tournament, a “run for bears” race to raise funds to purchase Build-a-Bears, a spring-training golf outing, and more.

Today and Tomorrow

Today, UMPS CARE Charities employs two full-time workers (an executive director and program director) while being led by a Board of Directors of umpires and supported by a volunteer wives’ committee. Together the group pushes forward to improve the charity each and every year. “[Executive Director] Jenn Skolochenko-Platt and [Program Director] Jenn Jopling do a really great job,” said Darling. “There’s no way we could do this without their organization and structure, and they’re making us better all the time.”

If you’d like to get donate to UMPS CARE Charities, learn more, get involved, or participate in one of the charity’s fundraisers, visit UmpsCare.com. You can also sign up for their quarterly newsletter or purchase UMPS CARE gear from the online store while you’re there.

Helping people is an easy call. UMPS CARE Charities has been proving that for over a decade, and looks forward to living that phrase for many more years.