As one of Maine’s first highly decorated female student athletes, Deb (Diconzo) Mooney answered the call for prospective field hockey referees more for the economic and social benefits than sheer love of sport.
“Not having a clue, even though I played four years at Dirigo and two at USM,” said Mooney, “I thought, Hey, it’s beer money.’ “
Mooney soon discovered how much she enjoyed having the best view in the house as the next wave of girls grew into star athletes in their communities.
Twenty-four years have passed, and Mooney simply can’t get the game out of her system. She’s one of the most respected field hockey officials in Central Maine, and a softball umpire, too.
But she’s also symbolic of Maine’s battle to groom enough officials to meet the ever-increasing demand of youth sports. The next generation isn’t answering the call or responding to the placards on college bulletin boards, as Mooney did.
While female officials are the norm in field hockey, they are almost non-existent in basketball and soccer, two sports in which girls participate in numbers equal to or even greater than boys. Also, the overriding concern about the hundreds of Maine referees with 20-plus years’ experience is that their bodies eventually will say no’ before their hearts do.
“I hope we don’t lose Deb anytime soon,” said Gail Santerre, a retired official and longtime spokeswoman for the field hockey officials’ association. “She would do anything for the game. The question, as it is with so many of the veteran officials, is how long physically will she want to do it?”
Perhaps the more critical query: Who will replace her?
In some higher-profile sports, it takes longer to ascend the ranks than many apprentice referees are willing to wait.
Spectators take great glee in pointing out eyeglasses, pot bellies and balding heads when disputing a call, but that evidence points at a problem that is lost on bleacher creatures.
“In looking at the two boards I’ve worked with, at some point, football will be in trouble,” said Monmouth Academy athletic director Steve Ouellette, who is also a certified but inactive basketball official with Central Maine Board 20. “There are many football officials close to senior citizen age, with very few officials in their 20s and 30s. I don’t know what football is doing to improve their situation, but I don’t see a great number of younger officials.”
Likewise, hockey struggles to lure younger blood to a sport where it is virtually a requirement. Being a hockey ref requires both a high level of fitness and a willingness to travel long miles.
Lewiston’s Bert Belisle, 61, first blew the whistle in 1974. He was named Maine Ice Hockey Official of the Year in 2000. With the recent retirement of his longtime cohort, Ron Bilodeau, Belisle takes pride in pointing out that he is the board’s elder statesman.
“I’m surprised they haven’t sent me to D’Youville (nursing home),” Belisle quipped. “But I still enjoy it. I get the butterflies. It’s the same feeling when I get ready to play hockey, which I still do two or three times a week.”
Belisle also officiates field hockey. He worked the Edward Little-Oxford Hills tournament game with Mooney in October.
Two officials are a necessity for post-season field hockey games, although numbers were so low in recent years that some regular-season games were played with only one.
Neither plans to resign anytime soon, but they’re doing as much as they can to drum up interest and loyalty from the next generation. Belisle acts as a mentor to 35-and-under hockey officials Greg Dumais, Mike Pleau and Denny Bourgoin. Mooney has taken recent Mt. Blue graduate Mary Sinclair under her wing while actively recruiting others.
“I think we’re better off without the number of officials as long as we can keep the positive, eager learners of this sport,” Mooney said. “I tell new officials if thet aren’t having fun on the field, then they are in it for the wrong reasons.”
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