WILLIAMSPORT, Penn. – It’s the summer vacation of a lifetime for Little League World Series umpires David Noegel and Eddie Smith.

Noegel, who lives in east Orlando, started umpiring in 2006. The West Point graduate and Gulf War veteran’s home base is Union Park Little League, but he works all over Central Florida.

“A couple of umpires I started out with kind of joked about how funny it would be if we got to the Little League World Series,” he said. “I mean, you never thought it was going to happen.”

Smith got his start calling balls and strikes in New Jersey around 1996. He now resides in Horizon West and calls games at Winter Garden Little League. Like Noegel, he also umpires games throughout the Orlando region.

“This is a dream come true for me,” he said. “I got my recommendation, and low and behold, I’m here, and I’m tickled pink.”

Coincidentally, Smith was the first base umpire for Lake Mary Little League’s opening game against South Dakota.

[MEET THE TEAM: Lake Mary All-Stars]

“I had butterflies, but they were lined up,” Smith jokingly said. “I felt comfortable out there, and I mean, I took in the crowd, but that didn’t really affect me because of my preparation.”

Lamade Stadium, where Lake Mary played Wednesday night, has the capacity to hold a whopping 10,000 fans.

“I did not anticipate how loud the crowd would be,” Noegel said. “Some of the verbal communication that you can do at a regular game, you can’t do that here.”

All 20 umpires working the Little League World Series are volunteers. While Little League takes care of their stay, the umpires’ travel costs are out of pocket.

“The volunteerism is embedded in (my heart),” Smith said. “The excitement I get when I see that child who’s timid but makes that great catch with a smile on their face does (my heart) good.”

[READ: Lake Mary All-Stars win first game in Little League World Series]

For both men, being an umpire has never been about making money but rather the love of America’s pastime.

“It’s a way to stay connected with the game I grew up loving and playing,” Noegel added. “You can’t be an umpire and not love the game.”

The umpires were included in the same pre-tournament festivities as the teams. They were at the parade on Tuesday throwing out candy to the spectators, and when they were introduced at Wednesday’s opening ceremonies, the crowd gave them a big round of applause.

“We all looked at each other and said, ‘Gentleman, enjoy. Enjoy the cheering and applause. It’s the last cheering that you’re going to hear on your behalf. From this point forward, half the people are going to hate what you do,’” Noegel said.

“That’s part of the game,” Smith added. “The best feeling is when you walk off the field and they didn’t know you were there.”

Following Wednesday’s match against South Dakota, the Lake Mary All-Stars’ next game is scheduled for Friday evening.

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Hundreds of New College of Florida library books, including many on LGBTQ+ topics and religious studies, are headed to a landfill.

A dumpster in the parking lot of Jane Bancroft Cook Library on the campus of New College overflowed with books and collections from the now-defunct Gender and Diversity Center on Tuesday afternoon. Video captured in the afternoon showed a vehicle driving away with the books before students were notified. In the past, students were given an opportunity to purchase books that were leaving the college’s library collection.

Some discarded books included “Nine and Counting: The Women of the Senate”, “The War of the Worlds” and “When I Knew” — which is a collection of stories from LGBTQ+ people recounting when they knew they were gay.

New College spokesperson Nathan March acknowledged the Herald-Tribune’s request for comment but had not provided the college’s response as of 2 p.m.

Amy Reid, the faculty chair and representative on the board of trustees, said when you throw away books, you also throw away democracy.

“They take the trees and people had a service to recognize the loss of those trees,” she said. “I want to do that for books, because books are what matter.”

Natalia Benavites, a 21-year-old fourth-year student at New College, said books in the dumpster carried the college’s seal as well as a “discard” sticker on the spine.

When she asked officials whether they could donate the books, she was told that under state statute the college can’t donate books purchased with state funds.

The college also discarded books from the Gender and Diversity Center, which was located across campus. The GDC books were purchased individually and not with state funds, she said. Several students and activists with the SEE Alliance worked Thursday afternoon to save the GDC materials before they could be thrown away.

This is a developing story, check back for updates.

Follow Herald-Tribune Education Reporter Steven Walker on Twitter at @swalker_7. He can be reached at sbwalker@gannett.com.

Stream rocket launch here:

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Some Florida residents may hear sonic booms following the liftoff of a Falcon 9 rocket on Thursday morning, according to SpaceX.

The agency plans to launch the Maxar 2 mission into orbit from the Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) in Cape Canaveral, with a 60-minute window opening at 9 a.m.

Eight minutes after liftoff, the Falcon 9’s first stage is expected to land at SpaceX’s Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. 

SpaceX set to launch Maxar 2 mission into orbit from Florida on Thursday

SpaceX said there is a possibility that residents of the following counties could hear one or more sonic booms, but the sound will depend on weather and other factors:

• Brevard
• Orange
• Osceola
• Indian River
• Seminole
• Volusia
• Polk
• St. Lucie
• Okeechobee

What is a sonic boom?

A sonic boom happens when something travels through the air faster than the speed of sound – about 750 mph – resulting in a loud boom similar to an explosion or thunder, according to NASA and U.S. Air Force.

NASA said the sound energy of a sonic boom is around 110 decibels.