A Labour of Love – Meet the Team Behind the Bandits

Visits: 1

A love of baseball can make you do crazy things.  Like the players, the majority of the volunteers have day jobs and work for the Brisbane Bandits up to five times a week.  Few have even crossed continents, hailing as a far as Canada, to share their love of the game on their own time and dollar; all in the belief that baseball has a place Down Under.

“We are currently at about 30 volunteers, usually we average about 20-25 volunteers at each game, the youngest being about 12 and the oldest would be 55 to 60” Volunteer Co-coordinator Carla Pinder explains.

From operating the Ustream to building the field and pitching mounds, positions include the very front-of-house (mascot Buster) to the strictly for the players – bat boys.

Dealing with individuals whose backgrounds range from IT to hospitality, Pinder and Operations Manager volunteer Alan Weir, work tirelessly to slot them in to roles that best utilize their talents.
The job description of a volunteer, however, can change at any moment; one minute David is in the ticket booth, the next he is half under a fence, pliers in mouth.  The girl, who was handing out garbage bags in the 7^th, is now half way across the field, leading thirty kids in a race to the third baseline.

 “I am impressed by the willingness of all our volunteers to pitch in, pardon the pun, and help out when volunteer numbers are short or we have extenuating circumstances, like poor weather” Pinder explains.  Flexibility and enthusiasm in her staff are regarded as the highest of skills.

During game night, Pinder is rarely in the same position for more than a minute, radio permanently attached to her ear.  Weir always offers an encouraging word, even in the 15^th hour of his working day.

General Manager Paul Gonzalez leads by example, whose only question during the game is, whether you are having a good time.  In no other league will you see the Assistant General Manager, throwing out stress balls to a screaming crowd to award a double play.  If you don’t see or hear Whitey Wallace, he is playing Buster that night.

The hands-on approach the management has adopted reinforces to the volunteers that they are all working together towards one goal, and no one is above directing a patron to the bathroom.

Behind-the-scenes of the operation is incredible – the tickets that take a second to scan, took hours to print.  The billboard you drive by, took weeks of negotiation.  The dugouts don’t clean themselves.

The media section makes the Bandits the only team in the ABL focused on promoting every individual player.  The ‘Stream Team’ (Chuck, Tom and Glen) work so well other states have called on them for advice.  Coshie’s infectious energy booms through the loudspeaker, sustaining the crowd during hours of play.

Bruce, who volunteered for the original Bandits, buys his own equipment, to make the scoreboard look better.  Groundsman Steve happily goes without sleep if he gets the field just right.  Amazingly, after 45 season games, the Ticket Office is out only $9, probably because the sellers only see a few minutes of each inning.

 “The dedication that the Volunteers have shown is amazing, nothing is too hard, they are always willing to go the extra mile when required and are just a great group of people, and the good thing is they all make me smile and laugh, so going to work at the Bandits is great fun” Pinder remarks.

Another event you won’t witness is the post-game recap – about the volunteer’s performance.  Huddled in Volunteer Central, Weir leads ‘The Good, The Bad, The Ugly’ plus ‘The Hero’s’ “Basically it’s a chance to highlight the positives, criticize the negatives –  what went wrong, the things that need to be prevented and who helped. The majority of comments are constructive and certainly positive. It also gives everyone a voice”.

At the volunteer’s induction, three months ago, GM Gonzalez made their mission clear: volunteers were to not focus on this season alone, but on building a League that will see many, a commitment they’ve honored:

QUOTE GONZO

The group is still throwing around ideas for the last series of home games; their enthusiasm hasn’t wavered, even slightly. “The best thing about the volunteers is that they are concerned about doing a good job” Weir remarks, they are “supportive of the Bandits philosophy of giving value to fans.”

Playoffs or not, the volunteers have had a successful season, adhering to the fundamentals of baseball: preparation, team-work, hard slog and above all, doing the best with whatever is thrown at you.