Community At Its Finest
By Sandy Balayan
March 2026
Steve and Linda Graves have lived quietly in Otis for 23 years. Steve, who just retired from his own business, Mass Media Marketing, and Linda–who we have written about many times as she is a widely known children’s book illustrator, artist and creative arts goddess extraordinaire–have always given back to the community in any way they can. Steve served on the library board of directors for ten years and coached baseball for thirteen years. They don’t ask for accolades and attention, they just live their lives and try to always be kind and do the right thing. There is a lot to learn from this couple.
The free after-school program is organized by Otis volunteers Steve Graves and Katy Utenis of the Otis Recreation Dept. It is made possible thanks to the help of Laurie Flower, Farmington River Regional School principal.
With Steve’s recent retirement, he was feeling a pang of nostalgia about the old days of after–school stickball, baseball and other sports. He checked with the principal of the Farmington River Regional School, Laurie Flower, and asked if there was a possibility of him running a weekly free sports program for grades 3-6 after school from 3:00-4:00. She welcomed his idea and they choose Friday afternoons. Linda also found her place as an art class assistant and she has been going in weekly, showing the students her work and helping with theirs.
“Families are always short on time. The Monday-Friday work/school grind is indeed just that–a grind. Growing up, my mother was a single mom and I remember sports being a big part of my childhood. Just going out after school and playing a game of stickball could relieve the built up energy from the school week. I’m paying it forward by providing the children in Otis, Sandisfield and Monterey the chance to just run and play at the end of the week. Warm ups, practice and noncompetitive games help the children socialize, develop motor skills and build confidence. We will be focusing on soccer and baseball,” says Steve.
This after-school sports activities program is sponsored by the Otis Recreation Department and has been well-received thus far. The program requires another adult to be present and Katy Utenis, a member of the Otis Recreational Department and who loved intramural sports herself, stepped up and volunteered to help run the program along with Steve. The last hurdle was to provide the actual equipment for this program. As Steve’s company was closing, his last official act was to honor his many years of business success and pair it with his love of sports by donating the funds to purchase ten basketballs and four indoor soccer balls.
For more information, email Steve at sgraves8@yahoo.com or call him at 757-681-9494. The program runs from January through May. He will be able to answer your inquiries about open spots at any time during the running of the program.
“After coaching local elementary school baseball for 13 years in South County, I have the experience and am in a unique position to foster a noncompetitive, rewarding experience for young children. Many of my past players have gone on to play high school and college sports. I hope this program can give the kids a taste of the fun of these activities,” Steve said.
A big “thank you” goes out to Linda and Steve for giving back to their community in this meaningful way. Getting involved takes a bit of initiative but the upshot is the gratification the giver receives. It can’t be measured in a quantitative way but the joy of the young participants can be measured by their smiles. Let’s all try to find the kindness in our hearts and give back to our community.
