“We are aging out,” stated Trinity Valley Volleyball Official Association (TVVOA) president Michele Bradshaw. This simple statement describes the status of game officials throughout scholastic sports. 

What Bradshaw went on to describe was a majority of officials in the 50+ age bracket. Counterbalancing this is a second age bracket of youthful officials – mostly college students or recent graduates.

“We are overjoyed at the young people joining the officiating ranks,” Bradshaw commented, “but what we find is that after college, when the normal pressures of life arise and folks begin to raise families, that the officiating often falls by the wayside.”

Volleyball fans will see a familiar face this year in area matches. Shylah Kratzmeyer, Mineola class of ‘23, has joined the ranks of the officials and begun calling matches. 

Kratzmeyer represents one of those young officials who are leveraging their knowledge and experience in high school sports to earn a stipend while attending college, and to give back to a sport that they love. 

Bradshaw offered enthusiastic support for Kratzmeyer joining the fellowship. “Shylah is an absolute delight to bring into the group. It took only a minute to speak with her to know that she would be an excellent official.”

If scholastic sports continue to flourish in sports-rich East Texas, it will, in the long run, be thanks to the willingness of people like Kratzmeyer who step-up to call games.

A look at some numbers may be beneficial. The TVVOA provides officials for 35 schools in a large district which stretches from Lone Oak to Oakwood (just shy of Buffalo). The chapter dispatches 65 officials to cover this area. 

“We are a small chapter,” Bradshaw stated, “large officiating chapters, in metro areas, may have hundreds of officials on their roster.” 

Even for a small chapter, the number of games for 35 teams in a full season multiplies quickly. Teams upload their schedules to a TVVOA website. A single dispatcher – known as the arbiter – factors in the requests of the 65 officials in order to meet the requirements. 

That very busy arbiter for TVVOA is Brenda Lindsey, a 45-year veteran of officiating. Bradshaw described the process as a lot of detail work and a little bit of magic.

Officials are required to appear at a venue 30 minutes before scheduled start. The 2024 fee schedule awards $70 per varsity match -- slightly less for sub-varsity and junior high. Mileage is awarded from the chapter center-point, in this case Athens, and is awarded as a point-to-point rate for distances beyond 91 miles. 

While many officials have played the sports they call when they were in high school, it is no requirement for officiating. Bradshaw explained, “Experience is not necessary, we are capable of teaching the game and producing a very able official.” Bradshaw noted that a willingness to learn and a love of sports is all that is required. 

New recruits must attend one of seven regional clinics, complete a course of instruction and pass a test. The fee to join is $90 for new recruits, who must also purchase their uniforms. Insurance coverage is provided. 

Those steps get an official in the door. Continuing education in the art of officiating builds expertise. 

What follows is a good source of income, flexible hours, family-like camaraderie and staying athletically involved. This year the chapter welcomed ten new officials – the former Yellowjacket volleyballer Kratzmeyer among them.

The Texas Association of Sports Officials (TASO), the overarching organization for the sport-specific chapters, is enjoying increased visibility due to the recent creation of The Texas Way – an officials’ course targeting coaches and athletes. 

Another initiative, Students Today are Referees Tomorrow, challenges varsity coaches to identify 3-5 seniors who possess those qualities of a good official and refer them to TASO with the athletes’ consent. Some schools are even introducing officiating as a continuing education specialty.  

Additionally, a military program waives the annual fee for veterans desiring to begin officiating. 

For Bradshaw, who was a strong left-side hitter while in school as a Plano Wildcat, volleyball has always “remained in the mix” of her life. Her oldest daughter, Kathleen, is a volleyball coach, while Kathleen (Mineola class of ‘04) and Courtney (Mineola class of ’07) were stand-out athletes. 

Bradshaw is in her 18th year as a volleyball official. She prides herself in calling a match which allows the athletes to be able to play their best. 

It will be a combination of Bradshaw’s commitment and Kratzmeyer’s willingness to serve which will ensure scholastic sports continue to thrive, as scheduled.