Whether they are hosting Zombie runs or updating a landscape, you can be sure that the Portage Parks and Recreation Department is working hard and having fun. It is the perfect fit for Sports Director Ralph Mundt. Not only has he been involved in athletics since he was seven, but he possesses the drive, passion, and light-hearted spirit demanded of a Parks and Rec employee.
Ralph learned how to swim at a public pool local to his home in Davenport, Iowa. It was across the street from where the Swim Team practiced and he watched them compete with growing interest. It was not long before he was drafted onto the team.
From that point on, swimming has been a constant in Ralph’s life. He swam throughout school, even in college where he attended university for a degree in public education. He became the assistant swim coach, and later the head coach, for Iowa State University.
A great job opportunity brought Ralph, his wife, and their three sons to Northwest Indiana. They settled down in Portage and Ralph began his career as a high school swim coach at Calumet High School. He taught social studies during the day and coached the swim team after classes. Then in 2009 he took on more responsibility as the school’s Athletic Director.
Being involved in sports is important for young kids. “It’s the other part of education,” Ralph explains. “They learn how to work together, as a group. They learn cooperation, team spirit.”
For some children, it is the difference between a successful academic career and a neglected education.
“It’s that extra motivation for some kids to study well and do what they need to do in class. If they don’t have good grades, they can’t play. If they are in sports it gives them the discipline and motivation to do well in class.”
In 2013. Ralph applied for the position of Sports Director through the Portage Parks and Recreation department.
“It was a chance to retire from public education and come back here to pursue a career that is similar to being an Athletic Director. I have a job that I think is really fun and really interesting.”
Ralph still keeps his passion for swimming close at hand. His sons are all swim coaches now- two of them coach the Portage High School swim teams. Ralph serves as an announcer for their competitions. Whenever he has time off from work he is either attending meets or improving the parks through his membership with the Parks Foundation.
Being a Sports Director is a demanding job. Ralph runs events for the city, oversees the use of parks and trails, and coordinates with the Outback Trails Organizations. Most projects are handled by the Parks Department as a group, but it still takes long hours and little sleep. It is worth it to see what is accomplished for the city.
“It’s a sense of contributing to an organization that is very important to our community. Parks and Recreation services are a cornerstone of any community. When people move to a city, they look at Parks and Recreation, business climate, and schools, and make the choice: Do I want to live here?”
Ralph wanted to live here, and his love for the city has only grown stronger.
“It’s a town that continues to grow,” he says. “It has a small town feel in a large town atmosphere. It’s changed dramatically since I came here in 1977. With the growth of population, the growth of business here… the diversification of business has been fun to watch.”
It is all in large part due to the Ralph Mundt and the rest of the Parks and Recreation department, and the many ways they have made our town a great place to live. Their website can guide you to all the current programs and future events they have in store: preschool with physical education blocks taught by Ralph Mundt. A daddy daughter dance in February. The Academy Program for youth soccer.
Athletics are about hard work and having fun. That is exactly the attitude that Ralph Mundt has brought to the Parks Department, and our town.