Sunshine Baseball Club’s Glenn Letts talks to Ben Cameron about his strong sporting connections to Sunshine, his love of the area’s history and his job recruiting the next generation of players.
You’ve imported fishing tackle for a living in Laverton North over the past 25 years, do you get out for a fish much these days?
Yeah I do a bit when I get a chance with the kids. We normally go to local creeks and rivers, or up on the Murray. I was born in Shepparton and grew up in Echuca, then moved to Melbourne when I was six.
When did you arrive in Sunshine?
I moved to Sunshine in 1993, I was 30. We had a friend that lived in the area back then, we had a look around and it was in our price range and we really liked it. We moved into the house and haven’t moved since, we’ve been there 22 years. I moved in with Marion my wife.
What do you enjoy the most about living here?
We moved around a lot as kids, so to stay in one place for so long and have a base was special enough. And to raise a family. The Sunshine Football Club has also been good, it’s a great family club, my boys played footy there for years.
You’ve been part of the Sunshine Baseball Club for over a decade, how did that come about?
I played baseball from the age of 20 to 24. I went overseas for 12 months when I was 25 and met Marion travelling. I went to the states and Europe, back in 1989.
When I moved back I had to find a job, I got a job here, that I’m at now. When I did the interview, there was a guy sitting next to the boss and his name was Pat Dalling, the second longest serving president of the Sunshine Baseball Club, for 17 years. I got talking to him during the interview and he put in a good word for me after I left, I got the job the same day. I’m in debt to him for that.
Are your children involved also?
I’ve got twins, born in 1995, when they were about eight, I got a flyer in the mail from the club and I remember what Pat said so I took the kids down and I haven’t looked back since. They’re still playing senior baseball.
Do you still play?
I played a couple of games last year, I’m currently coaching the thirds and the under-18s and I run the Tee Ball program also, and I’m the junior co-ordinator. I only play if they need me.
Has the sport remained strong during your 11 years at the club?
I’d say it’s maintained the same level over the years. The club has to field six junior teams to qualify for division one competition. We fill those teams pretty comfortably. The big growth in the past few years has been in Tee Ball, which has really been exciting, we had 36 register last year which is a huge plus for us. They age from four to eight, it’s a good introduction for baseball.
You also helped produce a booklet on the club’s history for its 75th birthday, how did you get involved?
A guy, John Mahoney, did the history of the club for the 50th anniversary, he updated it for its 60th, then I did it for the 75th.
