BEING PROUD
19,000 PLAYERS AND GROWING.
Being Proud is who we are —on the field, behind the player, and across generations of iPride community
BEING AN UMPIRE
THE BLUE CREW
Our umpires are the steady heartbeat of this game and this community. They show up early, stay late, and carry the responsibility of keeping play safe, fair, and moving—often in heat, noise, and pressure, and almost always without the recognition they deserve. They bring professionalism, calm, and consistency to every field, and when tensions rise, they’re the ones who keep the game grounded. More than officials, they’re ambassadors of our values and partners in making every tournament possible. We’re grateful for their time, their expertise, and the care they bring to our sport—because without them, there is no first pitch.
BEING AN UMPIRE
DAVID WAITE, UMPIRE IN CHIEF
For most of us at the Gay Softball World Series (GSWS), the job is simple: show up on time, geared up, in uniform, and ready to play. We worry about lineups, warmups, hydration, and whether our bats are hot or cursed. But the GSWS doesn’t run on good intentions and glove oil. It runs on logistics—thousands of moving parts that have to land perfectly, every hour, every day, across multiple complexes, dozens of fields, and seven divisions of play. And if even one of those pieces slips, the whole machine starts to grind.
BEING AN UMPIRE
RICHARD "ROSIE" JIMENEZ, UMPIRE
There’s no such thing as a single road to coming out. For some people, the journey is a straight shot. For others, it’s perilous curves, sudden U-turns, and forks in the road that force you to choose a direction before you’re even sure you’re ready. Richard “Rosie” Jimenez knows that kind of road intimately. He grew up in Compton in a world of machismo, where queer people—especially Trans women—were treated with cruelty that was both casual and violent. He learned early that being “found out” could come with consequences, and even before he fully understood what being gay meant, he understood one thing clearly: he didn’t want anyone to know.
BEING AN UMPIRE
STEP UP. MAKE THE CALL
Becoming an umpire is one of the most direct ways to strengthen our member cities. When you step into blue, you’re not just calling balls and strikes—you’re helping local leagues and tournaments run smoothly, keeping games safe and fair, and supporting the volunteer systems that make our community possible. Your presence brings consistency, professionalism, and confidence to every field, helping queer and inclusive softball thrive city by city.
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