2024 Georgina Honouree
To say that community and connection are important to Jim Anderson would be an understatement. He has affected and connected with a great deal of people over the years, especially during his nearly four decades working in community television. Surprisingly, when asked about leadership and impact, he states without hesitation that the baseball diamond is where he’s done some of his greatest lifework.
A leisure interest that began with his own children (Jimmy played from 1996–2009 and Tyler played from 2008–2023) turned into a more than purposeful hobby and existence. Jim has dedicated the last twenty-seven years of his time and heart as a volunteer coach and executive member of the Georgina Minor Baseball Association.
Now retired from Rogers tv, and from coaching, Jim is still very connected and involved with his community and extended family of past players – some of whom now have their own little players.
“Giving my time back to the community has been an honour.” While he volunteers in many ways including 20+ years for the Georgina Cares Fund, Georgina's only children's charity, he references coaching as the most impactful efforts of his adult life. “I truly believe that I have made a difference in the lives of many players, or at least hope that I did.”
Coaching isn’t what most people think. It’s spending many hours before and after each game, practice, or tryout. It’s the heartbreak of having to make player cuts. Organizing tournaments, travel, hotels, with loads of out-of-pocket expenses and costs and let’s not overlook the time it can take away from your own family. Jim says, “with the support of my wife Jennifer, and my daughters (Kellie and Faith), I was blessed to have the opportunity to live a dream and make a difference.”
Now, nearly thirty years later and newly retired, Jim’s players still call him “Coach”. They are young men, many of them fathers, and a handful are coaching, which absolutely fills Jim’s cup. To see the next generations learning, playing, and living by the same principles is a reward and satisfaction that Jim can more than take a little bit of credit for shaping.
Knowing that 2023 would be his last official season coaching, Jim took time to enjoy the fruits of his efforts by consciously savouring moments of presence and reflection. Embracing each (and every) of the “last time” experiences the season had to offer him including a 3rd place finish at the 18U OBA Provincials...his highest placing in 27 seasons.
This summer of 2024 will be the first baseball season in twenty-eight years that Jim Anderson isn’t coaching. You’ll still find him as a friend and as a fan, not far from the players enjoying the game from a different view. His boys will, for the first time, play together in the Richmond Hill Men's Recreational Baseball League. With no regrets, Jim states, “I know this experience has made me a better person, a better friend, a better dad and a better husband.”
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