by Kevin Grogan, Dash Sports
As the city of Groveland continues to thrive, it brought in former Major League Baseball ace pitcher Mike Walker to manage its Parks and Recreation department.
After hosting the Groveland Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning, Walker sat down with the South Lake Tablet to chat.
Tablet: A Major League Baseball Ace Pitcher! Tell us what was your early childhood like?
Walker: I was born in Chicago, but came to Florida in 1970 where I spent a couple of years living in Hollywood, Florida before moving to Brooksville where I still live. I literally grew up in the HYL (Hernando Youth baseball League) and for the past 10 years been active in the HYL and currently the president. I graduated from Hernando High school in 1984 and was blessed to be able to throw a baseball.
Tablet: After high school is when things started to really happen for you on the baseball diamond. Can you describe?
Walker: I was drafted by the Montreal Expos out of high school and then drafted a second time by the Expos after my first year of college. I went on to play for Seminole State College in Sanford with a two-year scholarship. After two years at Seminole, I was drafted by the Cleveland Indians. I also signed with Florida State University, which was the number one college team in the country. I would ask myself, “Do I want two more years of college or was it time to go test the waters of professional baseball. I decided to go professional in 1986 because I felt I couldn’t keep saying no too many more times? Two years later at the age of 21, I was moved up to the Major League; the youngest player at the time.
Tablet: Tell us about your days in the Major League.
Walker: I played professionally for 14 years and parts of five seasons in the Major League; Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs. I was born in Chicago, I grew up a Cub fan; It was my childhood dream to play for the Cubs; I finished my career in 1999 as a Cub and I”m still a Cubs fan.
Tablet: What did you do following your time as a major league pitcher?
Walker: My kids were 7 and 8 years old and I felt like it was time to go home after 14 years of travel. In 1997 my wife and I purchased Walker Team Sports and from 1997 to 2003, we specialized in team sporting goods. Everything I learned in my baseball career and Walker Team Sports lead to my career with Parks and Recreation. After a short time in real estate, the Brooksville Parks and Recreation position opened and I was offered the position. I remain in that role from 2004 to 2019 till I came to Groveland.
Tablet: Talk about your typical day at the “office”.
Walker: Each day I commute 33-miles through the beautiful Withlacoochee State Forest to Groveland; the drive helps me clear my head for the day. Covering both Parks and Recreation, my department currently has our Christmas Holiday events. Its been logistically challenging with Covid, but we are getting through it. We have been very busy decorating State Road 50 as well as the whole City with holiday lights & decorations. This time of year is very busy. We are a small department but we throw a big punch. My department works so hard for this growing community and I am really proud of them.
Tablet: What is the most rewarding part about what you do for the City of Groveland?
Walker: It is definitely the beautification of the City of Groveland. I take great pride in the six-mile stretch on SR 50. I have a passion for what the residents and visitors see when they drive through our City. They notice our city and say, “Wow!”. The City of Groveland is growing and the Groveland team is helping move it forward.
Tablet: What are some things you enjoy on your day off?
Walker: Holidays and weekends are times that we host events for the community. Let’s just say, playing baseball seven days a week and owning a business gives you the training and knowledge to do whatever it takes to satisfy the customer. So to answer your question, there are no days off but I also love what I do. I do have hobbies. I love nature and raising cattle on my 25 acres in Brooksville.
Tablet: A lot of growth around Groveland. What is a positive takeaway from this in your opinion?
Walker: The growth was definitely the reason why I applied to work in Groveland. Every day is still a learning opportunity for me. I love developing new parks and programs for the residents and surrounding areas. We are really focused on growing youth sports as well.
Tablet: You love to see people outside enjoying our area. Why has this always been important to you?
Walker: I love to see the interaction in our parks and at the events we produce. Anything we can do to get people outside these days is positive. Parks and Recreation is a true community resource that we touch as many of our residents as we can. We try to have an impact on as many of our neighbors as we can.
Tablet: What is your most challenging role as the Director of Groveland Parks?
Walker: Currently, special events are certainly a challenge due to the Coronavirus. We had to rethink everything this past year. We had to find a safe way to provide our services; for example, we decided to have two fireworks shows this past July to spread the people out. We want to have a good turnout for special events but not too good in these trying times. We have to do a lot of virtual events as well.
Tablet: What do you like most about living and working in south Lake county?
Walker: The most exciting thing for me is Groveland’s commitment to building for the future. With the direction of the city’s leaders, we are looking toward the future and building something new. It is nice looking forward to coming to work each day knowing that whatever we as a department do today is going to help everyone in the future.
