Longtime Officials, Statistician Honored for Decades as 'Behind-the-Scenes' Heroes
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
February 23, 2024
BROWN CITY – Jerry Sauder thought he was going to be a presenter Thursday night, as his alma mater Brown City was honoring officials Curt Lowe and Joel Venia and school statistician Todd Vandewarker for their decades of service.
But that was simply a ruse by fellow official Tom Mailloux and Brown City athletic director Tony Burton to get Sauder there to join the ceremony and receive his own award for 50 years as an official.
With Sauder on the court, 175 total years of involvement with athletics were honored between the JV and varsity Unionville-Sebewaing vs. Brown City girls basketball games. Sauder spent 50 years as an official, Lowe and Venia 45, and Vandewarker has spent 35 years as a statistician, all across multiple sports.
“Tonight, we gather to pay tribute to those whose steadfast dedication has woven the fabric of excellence into the tapestry of Michigan high school athletics,” Brown City principal Brad Hale said to kick off the ceremony. “It is with profound gratitude that we extend our heartfelt appreciation to the unsung heroes behind the scenes – the pillars whose tireless efforts ensure that each game unfolds seamlessly, each moment etched with the spirit of sportsmanship and fair play. … Tonight, we shine a spotlight on a few whose commitment spans decades, illuminating the path for generations of athletes to follow.”
Sauder’s 50 years as an official included 25 as a Division I college basketball referee. He is currently working in an administrative role with Elite Officiating, overseeing officials in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association, Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference. He’s officiated NCAA Tournament games and contests around the world after getting noticed at a camp at Western Michigan University.
“I’ve always said I’m the luckiest guy to put on a shirt,” he said. “I was fortunate enough to be selected to be given the opportunity. There’s a lot of guys that could have, but weren’t set up to do it at that time.”
During his time as a high school official, Sauder reffed MHSAA Finals for basketball and football. He also spent time officiating baseball and softball games.
He began officiating when his best friend Jim Seidell, a longtime coach and administrator in Brown City, convinced him to start. Sauder knows his path isn’t a common one, and that it’s not easy to convince people to get into officiating. But with perseverance, opportunities are available.
“There’s a dire need right now,” Sauder said. “We’ve got to do something because if we don’t, high school sports as we know it is going to suffer. … I was fortunate to have good people around me that mentored me. Kids start, they last a couple years and they walk away from it. They don’t pay enough money to get yelled at like people go at you now. I don’t blame the young people.”
Lowe, who officiated Thursday night’s JV game before the ceremony, got his start thanks to Sauder and Seidell. Also a Brown City graduate, Lowe’s 45 years of officiating include multiple assignments at MHSAA Football and Basketball Finals. He’s also been on the court for women’s college basketball games.
“Officiating is like family,” Lowe said. “I have met so many people – wonderful people. And, over 45 years, it’s been a ton.”
While he’s worked plenty of games in the Thumb, much of Lowe’s time as an official was spent in the Saginaw and Flint area, where he was able to officiate games featuring some of the state’s greatest athletes, including Mateen Cleaves, Draymond Green, Mark Ingram and the late Charles Rogers.
“Those were the best games, and Jerry got me in there,” Lowe said. “That was the best ball ever. It was just amazing to watch.”
Lowe’s crew Thursday night included a pair of younger officials who later officiated the varsity game with Mailloux. Lowe thinks it’s a great opportunity for athletes who want to stay connected to sports.
Venia’s start in officiating was more by happenstance. He was working the scoreboard for rec basketball games in his hometown of Marysville, and one day needed to fill in as an official. After reffing the game, he made $10 as opposed to the $5 he got for running the scoreboard, and made the move.
He’s still doing football games but is no longer on the basketball court or softball or baseball diamonds.
“It’s probably the contacts you make in the little towns,” Venia said about what has kept him in the officiating business. “I go down to the Macomb area and do that. In football, we always take five games up in the Thumb. I know so many people up here. With the kids, it keeps you younger, keeps you moving.”
Like Sauder and Lowe, Venia has officiated multiple MHSAA Football and Basketball Finals.
He played football, basketball and baseball in high school, and thinks that experience can be “tremendous” for future officials. But he was quick to point out that those who don’t have that experience can also thrive.
“I’ve worked with a couple guys that never played,” Venia said. “(Mailloux) never played football, but he’s a good football official. I mentored a guy that never played basketball, Jordan Stevens, who is the softball coach at South Dakota State. He never played basketball, never played football, but he was a very good official. I think it gives you an advantage, but by no means is it a barrier if you haven’t played.”
The person with the best seat in the house as Sauder, Lowe and Venia have run up and down the court or football field in Brown City has been Vandewarker, who was celebrated for his decades of service as a statistician.
When asked how he got started, he pointed at Burton.
“That guy suckered me into it,” Vandewarker said with a laugh.
Vandewarker was himself a Brown City athlete, competing in football, basketball and track. Over his more than three decades keeping stats, he’s seen several great Green Devils and opposing athletes – so many that he couldn’t narrow them down.
“A couple thousand (games),” he said. “I’ve seen some stuff, I’ve seen some good stuff. A lot of good players. Too many memorable ones to mention, I guess. I’ve seen the best of the coaches and heard everything they have to say. Best of the refs – I was in high school and Jerry Sauder was reffing my games.”
At that point, Vandewarker had to step away and start the pregame clock for varsity warm-ups. But when he came back, he had an idea of how long he may remain at the center of Brown City athletics.
“I always said as long as Tony and Cindy (Burton, Brown City’s assistant AD) were around,” he said. “But I don’t know. I’ll probably go for another 10-15, put a good 50 in. I think I got that in me, still.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) From left: MHSAA-registered officials Curt Lowe, Joel Venia and Jerry Sauder and Brown City statistician Todd Vandewarker stand together as they are celebrated Thursday at Brown City. (Middle) Vanderwarker receives his award for 35 years as a school statistician. (Below) Lowe refs the junior varsity game before the recognition ceremony. (Photos by Paul Costanzo.)
Reeb, Officiating Crew Dedicated to Helping Make Island Games Go
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
January 8, 2022
High school sports officials are quite familiar with the phrase, “They can’t play the game without you.”
Athletic Directors are even more familiar with it. They live it. They believe it. Covering the multitude of interscholastic contests is quite daunting for mainland Michigan ADs.
School officials on Mackinac Island and Beaver Island have an even bigger task.
That’s where Dave Reeb comes in. He’s been officiating volleyball and basketball for as long as folks can remember.
Without Reeb, 73 years young, and his partners, the island athletes simply wouldn’t be able to play the game.
“For many years Dave has organized getting refs over to the Island for our volleyball and basketball programs,” said Kerry Smith, Beaver Island AD. “He always makes sure we have someone here.
“Especially at a time when refs are hard to find, he always comes through for us.”
Reeb would have been at Mackinac Island this weekend with Glen McIntyre to officiate a boys basketball Northern Lights Conference game between the Lakers and Munising Baptist. COVID-19 challenges caused the visitors to cancel the Friday evening and Saturday morning contests.
McIntyre is currently registered for basketball, volleyball and softball with MHSAA. He began officiating in 1979. He got into volleyball a few years ago He’s scheduled to go with Reeb to Mackinac Island again Feb. 11 and to Beaver Island Feb. 18.
In the meantime, Reeb will take advantage of the weekend off and travel to Perry with his wife, Linda, to watch one of his grandsons play middle school basketball. It should be easy traveling as compared with journeying to Mackinac and Beaver.
Boat, airline and sometimes snowmobiles are offered by the schools to get Reeb and his partners over from the mainland and to the school. Reeb lives in the Inland Lakes area, as do many of his partners.
During his early days of going to the islands, Reeb flew out of Petoskey with his former referee partner Randy Sagante in a private plane actually piloted by Sagante. The two of them were dubbed “The Flying Referees” by a local reporter.
Chartered flights have been the most common mode Reeb and other referees have used to get to both islands.
“With Mackinac, you never know,” said Reeb, a 30-year volleyball and 20-year basketball veteran. “When you go over there on the ice crusher … it’s been fun too.”
Reeb’s next island game is at Beaver Island on Jan. 14. Steve Hines, formerly the longtime girls basketball coach at East Jordan, will be taking his first trip to officiate the Islanders with Reeb. They are scheduled to fly out of the Charlevoix Airport.
Hines has officiated volleyball with Reeb and has been to Mackinac Island once for volleyball. They’ve done basketball games together previously on the mainland.
“When I exited coaching, I decided to give officiating a shot,” Hines said. “I am looking forward to going with Dave.”
Hines is a shiny example of what school administrators love about Reeb. He always comes through with a partner so kids can play the game
“Every time, yep,” Hines said of Reeb.
Amy Peterson, who is now in her second year as superintendent, principal and athletic director for Mackinac Island, is glad she met Reeb shortly after starting on the Lake Huron island. She had been involved in athletics in her previous job at Houghton Lake but only as a parent of school athletes.
Reeb had been coming to Mackinac Island long before she arrived.
“I got to know Dave last year right when I got here,” Peterson said. “One thing about Dave is he is either here himself to help or he knows a whole lot of people who can.
“Being new to this area and the athletic part, he was really helpful.”
Another example of getting officials to the islands is Reeb’s grandson, Jacob. He went to Beaver Island in 2018 and 2019 to referee both volleyball and basketball with his grandfather.
“After we’d get done, he’d stick around and shoot baskets with the teams,” Reeb said. “They got to know him.
“It was fun for him. It was a connection for him too.”
It isn’t just his just his abilities to get officials nor his officiating skills that stand out for Reeb on the Lake Michigan island though.
“Dave is not only a ref but a friend to our community,” Smith said. “He genuinely cares about the kids and community here.
“He is an amazing asset to our school and the other schools he serves all over Northern Michigan,” Smith continued. “Dave is one of a kind, and we truly appreciate his commitment and dedication to BICS.”
Smith noted Reeb has had a significant impact on student-athletes over the years.
“The kids and parents know him well,” she said. “He goes out of his way to help kids improve skills as well as help new coaches.
“He always has a smile and a kind of easy-going demeanor,” she continued. “Everyone knows Dave, and we will keep him coming back to the island for as long as he wants to ref.”
Reeb has enjoyed the relationships, too, just as he did during his career as an educator with the Inland Lake schools.
“It is great to see the students progress year to year,” he said. “Now I am seeing some of their kids coming through, just like I did at Inland Lakes.
“Some of the fans have been enjoyable … you see them again and again,” he added. “I have really, really enjoyed it, and it helps the schools.”
Retired Beaver Island volleyball coach Connie Boyle indicated Reed was much more than a referee. She was impressed with Reeb’s commitment and saw him as a mentor, coach and a friend to many of the visiting coaches, as well as visiting and island athletes.
“When you ref on the island, it is a huge time commitment because you need to be at Island Airways in Charlevoix for your flight by 4:30 and you will ref basketball and volleyball games that night, as well as first thing in the morning, which means you won't leave the island until 1 o’clock the next day,” she said. “You can always count on Dave to do an impeccable job during the game.”
Boyle is one of many who noted the specialness and frequency of which Reeb and his wife Linda made quilts and presented them as gifts.
“Occasionally he gifts a senior one of his very special quilts, which are truly amazing and cherished by the girls,” Boyle said. “Because if Dave Reeb thinks you're a special player and person, you stand even a little taller.”
Boyle’ s daughter Caitlin, who died last year after battling a brain tumor, received a quilt from the Reebs. She was part of the Islanders Class of 2009.
Tom Frick, now retired, was a teacher at Mackinac Island and Inland Lake schools. He refereed volleyball and basketball for nine years. He was yet another example of Reeb finding referees to help.
“One day we were talking and he said, ‘Get your stuff, and we’ll do it’ - so I did,” Frick recalled. “We went over there four or five years.
“He was very committed to the those people on the islands,” Frick continued. “They really enjoyed him.”
Weather often interferes with getting on and off the islands. Reeb has never taken the two-hour ferry ride from Charlevoix to Beaver, counting on the plane ride. He has been on the much shorter ferry ride to Mackinac.
For the most part, the flights to the islands have been fine, the officials noted. Only once on each Island did Reeb get “stranded” while refereeing the Lakers and Islanders. He and his partner had to spend another night waiting for the weather to clear for a flight back to the mainland.
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Official Dave Reeb counts off an inbound during a basketball game at Beaver Island. (2) Former longtime official Morris Porter monitors the action as Caitlin Boyle sets during a 2008 match. (3) From left, Reeb, Gerald LaFreniere, referee Jerry Cook and Rick Speck talk things over at the scorer’s table. (4). From left, former official Randy Sagante with Beaver Island athletes Heather McDonough (11), Deven Cook (15), former volleyball coach Connie Boyle, Caitlin Boyle (14), Maeve Green (6) and Reeb. The four athletes were seniors in 2008-09. (Basketball photos courtesy of Beaver Island News on the ‘Net; volleyball photos courtesy of Frank Solle.)