During a lengthy drive from his Sacramento home to Oregon for a golf and fishing vacation, Mike Pereira had plenty of time to think about addressing two issues especially important to him. How could the former director of NFL officiating combine enhancing his lifelong profession while helping military veterans transition into new careers.
He came up with Battlefield to Ballfields, an organization the current Fox Sports analyst launched this week. His group will offer financial backing, training and eventual placement for servicemen and women to pursue careers in officiating.
“I was thinking about the shortage in officiating and how we could get veterans to become officials,” Pereira said Wednesday. “Could I start a foundation that could pay for vets to become sports officials?”
Using his own money, Pereira and his wife, Gail, began a pilot program in California. Now, with the help of a board of directors that includes former Titans and Rams coach Jeff Fisher; former Green Beret Nate Boyer; and Barry Mano, founder and president of the National Association of Sports Officials, Battlefields to Ballfields is going national in multiple sports.
“We did research on armed forces veterans and those who had returned, and we learned much of their struggles involved them missing being part of a team, missing having a goal,” Pereira said. “And so it seemed to almost parallel officiating, which really is a team concept, a goal of trying to find order out of chaos.
“It seemed a pretty good match and we came up with this idea,” he continued. “We are going to find these returning vets and will be getting them involved in their communities and help them find a new direction and goal.”
Pereira will reach out to the various professional leagues, college conferences, high school and youth associations. He’ll also conduct fundraising to corporate entities, and has scheduled a golf tournament for June 19.
“We are trying to get officials involved and trying to improve officiating as part of this program,” he said. “I am hoping sports organizations and corporate people will help with the funds. A scholarship for a veteran will basically cost the foundation $1,500. I want to assign a veteran to each scholarship so anyone involved at that level will have a direct connection.”
Pereira already has a prized student in Thomas Harris. A former Navy sonar technician who served on the USS Alabama and USS Tunny has worked nearly two decades for Trader Joe’s.
As part of his involvement with a veterans program called IAVETSTT (Iraq Afghanistan Veterans Transition Training), he met Boyer, a onetime football player.
