[Scuba_ref]

Originally Posted by CMHCoachNRef

Scuba_ref,
ONE of the reasons VIRTUALLY ALL of us officiate is the money. If you argue with this point, my question is, "Do you always RETURN your game fee after the game is over?" If the answer is, "No." Then ONE of the reasons you officiate is to put some money in your pocket.

CMH - Dealing in absolutes one way or the other won't win you many arguments. Of course I don't return EVERY game fee. I do however donate a lot of referee time on court whenever the opportunity presents itself; working the Lion's club scholarship game, giving back the game fee for cancer awareness nights, refereeing church basketball every Saturday for two months. The point is that most of us ref because we love it not because we get paid to do it. When getting paid to do it becomes the major justification then maybe it is time to re-evaluate.

This is partially true also for young officials - I understand that there is a motivation continuum with money at one end and enjoyment at the other. Younger officials may tend to fall towards the money end, but if they get no enjoyment out of it then they are most likely providing a disservice to the teams they officiate.