Photo by Kari Chalmers – Alan Mendes, left, is honored before Monday’s game at Eureka High.

By Ray Hamill — Longtime basketball official Alan Mendes was honored this week for his 40 years of service to the local sports community, and he had no idea it was coming.

“I was totally surprised,” said Mendes, who admitted he was a little teary eyed when his fellow Six Rivers Basketball Officials presented him with a plaque to commemorate the milestone achievement and introduced him to the crowd before the Eureka boys hosted South Fork on Monday night.

“I wasn’t expecting anything of the sort. I was very honored.”

It was well-deserved recognition for someone who has not only been an integral part of high school basketball here on the North Coast for the past four decades, but someone who is among the most respected officials in the area.

“There’s a lot of respect for him, not only for his knowledge of the game, but for the way he calls a game,” Six Rivers Basketball Officials Association commissioner Mike Harvey said. “He brings a passion and really cares, and when they see Alan coming in they know they’ve got a good official that will keep them on their toes.”

For Mendes it all began when he was still a student at Fortuna High back in the early 1980s.

He played basketball before high school and tried out for the Huskies as a freshman but failed to make the team.

“That’s when I realized I had other talents and started officiating junior high basketball,” he said. 

After graduating from Fortuna in 1983, he joined the Six Rivers association and has “been going ever since,” he said.

“I have absolutely no clue how many games I’ve done over the 40 years, and there’s been good and bad.

“I had some real good postseason runs. I officiated two NorCal championships (state semifinals), and I was very honored to be a part of that. The playoff runs are always exciting. You see a different caliber of basketball.”

Mendes’ ties to the local community go well beyond the basketball court.

He was with the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department for 22 years before retiring in 2019 and has been a member of law enforcement for 36 years.

When he’s not officiating basketball games he works part-time as a reserve police officer in Ferndale.

“I’ll be 59 in March and I’ve lived my entire life in Fortuna and don’t plan on going anywhere,” he said. 

In addition to his many years officiating basketball, Mendes also has umpired little league baseball and city league softball, but admits he feels more at home on the court.

“The rule book for baseball is extremely complicated,” he said with a chuckle. “There’s so many what ifs.”

His wife of 32 years, Shelly, and sons Travis and Tanner — the latter of whom is also a local basketball official — were all on hand on Monday.

“I teared up,”Alan said. “It was emotional for me. My entire family was there. It was a great honor and very much unexpected.

“It’s never been about me. I’m out there for the kids, the players, the fans, the coaches, and that’s how it’s always been since I started.”

In the four decades since he first picked up his whistle, he has not missed a season yet, a rare achievement for any local official.

“When I look back, it doesn’t seem like 40 years,” he added.

The long-time official has been limited to evaluating new officials this season as he recovers from shoulder surgery, but he is hoping to get clearance to return next week and is looking forward to getting back out on the court.

And Mendes’ contribution to the local sports community goes well beyond his officiating.

After his mother Wilma passed away in 2021, he was left in charge of her estate and founded the Wilma Jean Mendes Memorial Fund.

Last year, they wrote a check for $5,000 to help fund new basketball hoops and equipment at Ferndale Elementary school.

According to school Athletic Director Rex Rigney, Mendes was officiating a game at the school and noted to him that “these are the same hoops in this gym as when I was a kid in 1979. Can’t you afford new ones?”

“My response to him was ‘Yes, if you donate $5,000 I’ll buy new ones,’” Rigney said. “Needless to say, the next day Alan wrote a $5,000 check to Sport and Cycle and purchased NBA quality ‘breakaway’ backboards and rims for our gym.”

According to Mendes, it was an easy decision for him and Shelly, especially considering Wilma was such a big supporter of all Ferndale sports.

“My mom would be proud,” he said.

The donation also inspired some community members to help out.

“As a result of getting new basketball hoops, several local community members and school board members were inspired to volunteer their time to repaint the gym’s interior,” Rigney said. “One good deed led to another good deed.”

In 2022, the Wilma Jean Mendes Memorial Fund also initiated an annual athletic scholarship for graduating Ferndale student athletes.

As for his future out on the court, Mendes says he isn’t ready to call quits on his career just yet.

And that doesn’t surprise Harvey.

“Sometimes old dogs never retire,” the commissioner said.