Sports can offer a sense of community to many young kids as they grow up. The opportunity to be surrounded by other kids who hold the same passion and adults who want to see them grow into strong adolescents can teach kids how to be a part of a team and work together. For Wendy Schnarr, Player Coordinator for Portage Jr. Miss Softball League, her love for her work comes from her desire to be a role model and teach kids the value of their community.
Schnarr was born and raised in Portage. She attended Portage High School, where she graduated in 1990. Community has always been important to Schnarr, and her dedication to giving back to the City of Portage can be traced back to her parents and what they taught her as she grew up.
“The people who have influenced me the most are my mother and father,” Schnarr said. “If I could thank anyone it would be [them] for teaching me strong values and about what life has to offer.”
Schnarr is not all talk; she is a woman of action. She has brought her strong values to Portage for the past 20 years in way that has affected thousands of kids and their relationship to their community and themselves. When her three children, Kaydie, Kayla, and Kristopher, were young, her son was involved in sports, but she felt that it was beyond important for her two daughters to have someone in sports that they could look up to as well.
Schnarr then began her volunteer experience with the Portage Jr. Miss Softball League, an organization that has introduced the game of softball and teamwork to Portage girls for decades. She wanted to be someone who the girls could look up to, someone who was strong and truly interested in what they were doing.
Thus began her role as player coordinator. Schnarr’s responsibilities include making sure everything runs smoothly for players as they play their hearts out on the field. She’s an essential part of the organization, which strives to help kids stay healthy, active, and learn how to be a part of the team. From offering resources for discounts on equipment as well as guidance on purchasing equipment, the Portage Jr. Miss Softball League has shown time and time again how much it cares about Portage kids—just like Schnarr, who holds all of these values close to her heart.
“The best part of what I do is being able to give back to the kids who participate,” she said. “I want to let people know that there are so many ways to give back to our Portage Community whether that be through volunteering time or donating money. It is so important to give back through Jr. Miss Softball because it helps keep kids active, involved, and out of trouble.”
When Schnarr isn’t volunteering her time, she works as the staff account at MonoSol, a Kuraray Division. As a dedicated mother, she brings the same passion and love to her family that can be found in everything she does. From her time with the Portage Jr. Miss Softball League to her love for her family, Wendy Schnarr is a prime example of someone in Northwest Indiana striving to do good for everyone she comes across.
For more information about the Portage Jr. Miss Softball League, please visit http://www.portagejrmiss.com/Default.aspx?tabid=702567. Don’t forget that signups for the Fall 2018 season begins August 11th! You can find out more from their Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/events/296548307761330/.