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Thursday
March 18, 2010 Since 1922 |
Volunteers make BH tourney a true ‘classic’
By Dave Rogers
The Baytown Sun Published December 29, 2009 Editor’s note: Fans at this week’s Gulf Coast Classic at Barbers Hill High School can watch dozens of games being contested in the three-day boys and girls basketball tournament. But few will give more than a passing thought to the workers and their effort that goes into what has become a community event for Mont Belvieu. This is the first of a three-part series looking at the planning and work that goes on behind the scenes.
MONT BELVIEU — Benny May can’t recall the exact year he became the man in charge of “the list.”
But May, a longtime school board member and parent of players on both the Eagles boys and girls team, says he’s been helping with the Gulf Coast Classic since before either of those children were born.
“I was approached every year to see if I could work and then one year, they asked me if I could be in charge of finding workers,” May said. “I’ve been doing it ever since.”
May’s list is for workers to fill three slots for each of the tournament’s games. This year, there are a total of 49 games scheduled on three courts, so that’s 147 slots to fill for the jobs of operating the scoreboard clock, keeping the official scorebook and collecting admission fees at the door.
There are many pieces that go into putting on the holiday tournament, now in its 19th year, that has become quite the civic event.
“I know the community looks forward to this tournament every year,” said Roy Adams, a local resident who schedules the on-court officials for every game.
“They like basketball and they get to see other teams. From 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., there’s basketball up here for three days, in three gyms. They used to run four gyms all day long.”
Besides the “official” workers, the booster club is in charge of staffing concession stands at the high school, where teams play in both the Competition Gym and Auxiliary Gym, and the Eagle Field House at the south end of Eagle Stadium.
There are 108 slots for concession workers and that doesn’t count the hospitality room that feeds breakfast snacks, lunch and dinner to coaches and tournament workers. Mothers of Barbers Hill basketball players run the hospitality room.
Barbers Hill’s girls’ basketball team designed a souvenir T-shirt for the tournament, which is sold at the concession stands. Teacher Gina Harvey, with help from the coaches, puts together the tournament program.
Pat Hollomon, a retired Barbers Hill coach who volunteers as scorekeeper each year, recalls the tournament began when boys coach Kirby Priest and girls coach Pennee Hall decided to merge their December tournaments.
Originally, there were 24 or more girls teams in action along with 16 boys teams. This year’s field includes 14 girls teams and 12 boys teams.
“There wasn’t anything for the kids to do during the holidays,” Hollomon said. “The coaches had trouble scheduling games, so this was perfect.
“The community really jumped on it, and the community runs the thing now. Probably 90 percent of the people who help here never worked for the school.
“You look around and see all these retired people. They live up here for three days.”
Many of them are spectators; many are working at the tournament.
“This is the only time off that school people and coaches get,” said May, the keeper of the list for workers at the scorers table and entrance gates. “You hate for them to have to work.
“So we have a pool of people that come up and help out every year. Usually, we have a few spots left we fill with coaches, but even there, we have plenty of those who want to help.”
With the exception of the refs, none of the tournament workers are paid.
“Not a nickel,” May said. “That’s the good part of it.”
The Baytown Sun Published December 29, 2009 Editor’s note: Fans at this week’s Gulf Coast Classic at Barbers Hill High School can watch dozens of games being contested in the three-day boys and girls basketball tournament. But few will give more than a passing thought to the workers and their effort that goes into what has become a community event for Mont Belvieu. This is the first of a three-part series looking at the planning and work that goes on behind the scenes.
MONT BELVIEU — Benny May can’t recall the exact year he became the man in charge of “the list.”
But May, a longtime school board member and parent of players on both the Eagles boys and girls team, says he’s been helping with the Gulf Coast Classic since before either of those children were born.
“I was approached every year to see if I could work and then one year, they asked me if I could be in charge of finding workers,” May said. “I’ve been doing it ever since.”
May’s list is for workers to fill three slots for each of the tournament’s games. This year, there are a total of 49 games scheduled on three courts, so that’s 147 slots to fill for the jobs of operating the scoreboard clock, keeping the official scorebook and collecting admission fees at the door.
There are many pieces that go into putting on the holiday tournament, now in its 19th year, that has become quite the civic event.
“I know the community looks forward to this tournament every year,” said Roy Adams, a local resident who schedules the on-court officials for every game.
“They like basketball and they get to see other teams. From 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., there’s basketball up here for three days, in three gyms. They used to run four gyms all day long.”
Besides the “official” workers, the booster club is in charge of staffing concession stands at the high school, where teams play in both the Competition Gym and Auxiliary Gym, and the Eagle Field House at the south end of Eagle Stadium.
There are 108 slots for concession workers and that doesn’t count the hospitality room that feeds breakfast snacks, lunch and dinner to coaches and tournament workers. Mothers of Barbers Hill basketball players run the hospitality room.
Barbers Hill’s girls’ basketball team designed a souvenir T-shirt for the tournament, which is sold at the concession stands. Teacher Gina Harvey, with help from the coaches, puts together the tournament program.
Pat Hollomon, a retired Barbers Hill coach who volunteers as scorekeeper each year, recalls the tournament began when boys coach Kirby Priest and girls coach Pennee Hall decided to merge their December tournaments.
Originally, there were 24 or more girls teams in action along with 16 boys teams. This year’s field includes 14 girls teams and 12 boys teams.
“There wasn’t anything for the kids to do during the holidays,” Hollomon said. “The coaches had trouble scheduling games, so this was perfect.
“The community really jumped on it, and the community runs the thing now. Probably 90 percent of the people who help here never worked for the school.
“You look around and see all these retired people. They live up here for three days.”
Many of them are spectators; many are working at the tournament.
“This is the only time off that school people and coaches get,” said May, the keeper of the list for workers at the scorers table and entrance gates. “You hate for them to have to work.
“So we have a pool of people that come up and help out every year. Usually, we have a few spots left we fill with coaches, but even there, we have plenty of those who want to help.”
With the exception of the refs, none of the tournament workers are paid.
“Not a nickel,” May said. “That’s the good part of it.”