- November 6, 2024
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Palm Coast’s Fred Lewers is the international Little League volunteer of the year, after 50 years of service to the organization. He began as a manager in 1961.
In 1990, Palm Coast resident Fred Lewers retired from his job as a member of the New York City Fire Department, where he worked for 20 years. Now, 21 years later, Lewers is still working hard at his other passion: his work as a 50-year volunteer in Little League.
“My family always taught me to give back, and this became my way of doing that,” Lewers said.
Earlier this month, he was named the 2011 Little League Volunteer of the Year for baseball and softball.
“Fred Lewers has worked tirelessly for more than half a century to make sure that every child who wanted to play Little League baseball would be able to do so,” said Bill Ward, president of Palm Coast Little League.
Lewers was part of the original board of directors for Palm Coast Little League and is also treasurer. PCLL has grown from two teams, in 2000, to 40 this season.
“We live in a great city that has supplied us with great facilities for the kids,” Lewers said. “There has been a great cooperation and coordination between the league and the city.”
Lewers will be honored in Williamsport, Pa., at a breakfast and on-field ceremony during the 2011 Little League Baseball World Series, which will take place Aug. 18 to Aug. 28.
Stephen Keener, president and CEO of Little League Baseball and Softball, said there are 1 million volunteers worldwide, in the organization.
“Volunteers like Lewers are the foundation of our organization and the reason Little League is the best youth sports organization in the world,” Keener said.
Little League is also the largest organized youth sports program in the world, with more than 2.5 million players spanning every state and many countries.
“You first think of it as, ‘I’m one in a million,’” Lewers said of his award. “But I’m of the million. I’m just representing them … That’s what amazes me about the program. I don’t think there’s anything else like it in the world.”
Organizations that support Palm Coast Little League include Red Lobster/Olive Garden, Days Inn, Tom Gibbs Chevrolet, Publix, Total Comfort Heating & Air and event patrons, who donate change into a pot at field concession stands.
Ward said Lewers’ love of baseball is matched only by his dedication to his family. “He has earned a place in the hearts of tens of thousands of kids who have become better citizens as a direct result of his efforts. Fred exemplifies everything that is good about Little League Baseball.”
Lewers got into Little League when he was 19. He was asked to take over a local team, said, “Just until we can find someone else to handle it.”
That turned into 50 years of service. And that first season, Lewers led his team, which he chose from a list the day after tryouts, to the division championship, where they took home gold.
He says he still remembers the names of every player on that team.
Lewers, along with other local volunteers, are also in the process of constructing a 2,500-square-foot storage, meeting and player/managerial training facility at the Indian Trails Sports Complex, to be ready for use in the fall.
“It’s only going make the program that much better,” he said. “As the program gets bigger, you need these things … I’ve been down this road before. It’s just a growth cycle.”
The project remains about $10,000 shy of completion.
To donate or volunteer, contact [email protected], or visit www.PCLLonline.com.
— Mike Cavaliere and Andrew O’Brien contributed to this story.
