50 years on the field

NORWALK — A local umpire has been a mainstay at local sports stadiums over the last 50 years. Norwalk resident Steve Schumm started to umpire boy's baseball in 1968 and has officiated multiple sports every year since. When girls sports were introduced in 1972, he started umpiring softball. Each year, Schumm has renewed his certification for baseball, softball, basketball and volleyball. He started basketball and volleyball in the early 1980s. "I umpired in the Cleveland area and around here. You go to meetings to renew your certification each year. You have to be certified separately and they have different classifications," he said. "I've been a class one umpire for a long time." While in school, Schumm played football, basketball and baseball and his interest in athletics led him to become a certified umpire. "When I first started umpiring, they had wooden bats. Now, everything's metal," he said. " The ability of the players and the competition level seems to continually increase. It seems like they're taller and faster." One of the most rewarding parts of umpiring, Schumm said, is seeing the athletes grow and become better players. "I like watching them grow and refine their skills and get excited," he said. "I love to see when kids make a good play." For the last few years, Schumm has umpired side-by-side with his friend, Norwalk Reflector editor Joe Centers. "This past year, we've umpired together a lot more," he said. "My wife asks why I don't give it up, but I just like doing it." Every year, for each sport, rules and regulations change. To keep up, umpires have to attend a certain number of meetings throughout the year. "The 3-point shot changed basketball entirely. It's a different game because of that," he said. "Before hardly anyone could throw a baseball over 90 mph, now so many can and that never used to be the case." Since he started officiating varsity athletics, the number of sports officials in every sport has continually decreased, Schumm said. Right now, Schumm has his next two years of officiating planned. "They'll schedule you two years ahead because they have such a shortage of people," he said. "I've got my volleyball schedule and basketball schedule and everything for the upcoming seasons already on my calendar." Schumm serves as the secretary of the Norwalk Area Umpires Association. In addition to umpiring for the last 50 years, Schumm has been a member of the Norwalk City Council for the last 10 years. He's up for re-election this fall. "I have a strong financial background that's helpful when they go to negotiate and budget planning," he said. The opinions of Norwalk residents are important to Schumm, and hearing their thoughts is better the city, he said. Schumm said he felt a responsibility to join the council, as his family first came to the area after the Civil War. "We really want to do what we can for Norwalk because so many of my relatives, my parents and my grandparents, have been here," Schumm said. "If you're a citizen of Norwalk, feel free to call City Hall or me. Every person who is on council really has an interest in doing the best they can for Norwalk."