"One kid was in the outfield chasing butterflies," chuckles longtime Willow Glen resident Joe Walter, recalling one of the hundreds of Lincoln Glen Little Leaguers he worked with, "so I made a catcher out of him."

Funny as it sounds, it is no joke. Anybody who has tried to coach or teach 8- and 9-year-old kids anything can relate. Mr. Walter, who will turn 89 in April, certainly is not the only coach to work with players long on energy and short on attention.

However, most coaches would not have made a catcher out of the butterfly-chasing outfielder.

And most coaches, or any type of volunteer, do not stay with youth sports programs long after their children are gone. In all, Walter served the players and parents of the Willow Glen neighborhood league for 33 years.

On March 13 at River Glen Park, a beautiful day for an opening day celebration, Lincoln Glen began its 51st season by honoring one of its founding fathers—and did they honor him!

In fact, before the more than 400 Little Leaguers joined their teams for the annual parade around the bases, the current slate of volunteers, led by board member Becky Jones, had honored good, ol' Mr. Walter into tears.

Mr. Walter knew he was getting an award—the Volunteer of the Year Award, given each year since 1996 in memory of another legendary volunteer, Wes Houseweart. His granddaughter, Genene Vaccaro, had told him that much.

And it made sense, he had thought. Although on his trophy wall at his quiet Prevost Street home rested a plaque, given to him by Lincoln Glen in 1989, recognizing his "33 years of service," it did seem fitting that the league would want to honor somebody "who was around when they first were chartered 50 years ago," Walter said.

What his granddaughter didn't tell him was that he would be throwing out the first pitch and, more startling, that the league was naming the "A" Field in his honor, "Joe Walter Field."

So, standing alongside his wife Edith, near home plate, in front of hundreds, including his two 50-something sons who played in Lincoln Glen, Mr. Walter listened to Jones read a long tribute describing how he had helped the league over the years.

Then she reminded the crowd that Mr. Walter had been the first coach for many players, including former Major League pitcher Dave Righetti, now the pitching coach of the San Francisco Giants. Before the oohs and ahs had finished, Jones acknowledged the attendance of Sandy Righetti, Dave's mother, and started reading a letter sent by Righetti from spring training.

"On behalf of my family," the letter started, "thanks for helping us get off to a good start in baseball."

When Jones reached a congratulatory note about the dedication of "Joe Walter Field," you could see Mr. Walter's bespectacled face shift and his lips tighten. He knew he had been had.

"I was really surprised," Walter said later. "All these memories went through my system, and I was speechless."

After the crowd's appreciative applause had settled, Mr. Walter, trying to be the calm coach, began to address the crowd.

Coaching Lincoln Glen Little Leaguers "were great years of my life," he said. "This age is a critical stage of youth. A coach has to remember that the kids are not just playing baseball ... "

He couldn't continue. The memories flooded in and a short sob came out.

The crowd applauded again, and Joe regrouped to throw out the first pitch a few minutes later. Not a bad throw for an 88-year-old. K.C. Carr, a 12-year-old who had recited the Little League Pledge, made a nice short-hop scoop and earn Coach Walter a "strike" call from the master of ceremonies.

After he left the field, signed a couple of baseballs for some farm leaguers, visited with Sandy Righetti, and posed for some photographers, Mr. Walter finished what he was trying to tell the crowd.

"Coaches need to remember that [the players] are children, and this is the time when character development is so important. A coach has to set a good example for them."

During his 33 years in the league, Mr. Walter was as a sponsor, coach and board member for much of that time.

Walter is considered responsible for starting up Lincoln Glen's farm league, a separate division for 8- and 9-year-olds. When his oldest son, Robert, turned 8 years old, there was no such division. Upon Joe's urging, a division was formed, emphasizing learning and sportsmanship, teamwork and fun, principles that still guide the coaches and players today in what is known as the "A" division.

Robert remembers playing for his father for one year, then moving on to another division.

"Dad stayed and worked at the farm level," says Robert, a left-hander who went on to pitch for Willow Glen High and Santa Clara University in the early 1960s. "It was kind of neat, I thought back then. Other dads would move up with their sons. He just kept on coaching the little guys."

Barry Walter, Joe's younger son, remembers playing for Wes Houseweart and coaching alongside his dad when Dave Righetti and his brother, Steve, started out.

"When I was in high school and college I helped Dad coach for eight years," Barry said. "It was usually just the two of us. I remember Dad always being real positive."

Joe, according to granddaughter Genene, who did a lot of research in preparing an article for the annual Lincoln Glen program, says former players and their parents remember Joe Walter "as a positive influence during their first experiences with baseball—a kind, gentle and patient man who would stop the game to help a player understand what happened and take that moment to teach something big or small.

"He at times even taught the parents a little about patience and encouragement."

Although he hasn't been active in the league since 1988, he has been active. He travels with his wife and volunteers as a docent at the San Jose History Park. On a recent trip to Arizona, he took in a spring training game. Until about a year ago, Joe was playing softball on the "Vintage Outlaws" senior team, even pinch-running for men 20 years younger than him.

The ol' coach expects to be at River Glen Park quite often this spring, watching great-grandsons Mason Vaccaro (A League) and Cole Meusel (T-ball) take their turns at bat.