All, I wanted to say a very big THANK YOU to all Districts who sent umpires over for the Juniors Tournament (which is almost done). We have been very fortunate to have what is arguably the best crew for a tournament I have EVER seen.. In 31 years of little League. These guys were/are amazing. They are dedicated individuals that represented the Little League ethos, were gentlemen, and made zero mistakes in all the games I watched. They then started teaching. Umpires from District 13 which were not as experienced helped with a few games; The guest umpires took the time to help them improve their skills and understanding of umpiring baseball. And did it without making them feel stupid or unvaluable. They taught like professionals. The camaraderie they developed was good. These umpires that came to our tournament brought skill, grace, and professionalism, and frankly gave us lofty goals to shoot for in terms of developing umpires in our district. I thanked them and told them they have INSPIRED our umpires to do better, and motivated presidents in our District to value the umpire more and develop them better within their leagues. This group of umpires has shown us what "Good" is in every aspect of the word. And I have been to the LLWS a few times. And personally for me. it gave me a bit of hope of where we could wind up as a District in terms of umpire development. Thank you to all who sent us folks. It's been amazing to watch. Regards JP DA WA5/13