Bayonne’s Supervisor of Recreation Pete Amadeo has spent much of his 35 years impressing others. His no-hitter during his high-school baseball years at St. Peter’s Prep (an accomplishment that only happens twice a year on average in the major leagues) and countless awards lining his office testify to that. But on a warm Friday afternoon in April, while working on his batting swings at Gorman Field, there’s one person who’s not impressed, and lets him know it: his eldest son.
“What was that?” Matthew, 6, continually asks his dad, as Pete keeps bunting his son’s low-flying pitches. “Hit as hard as you can!”
For Pete, this is a common occurrence when he plays with Matthew, currently in Little League.
“Always,” he says when asked if his first-born is his harshest baseball critic. His youngest son Nicholas, 1, giggles from behind a nearby fence, with his mom Lisa and his sister Ava, 4, in tow.
The moment is just one of many memorable ones that Pete has experienced with kids around town.
Earlier in the day, in his office at town hall, he shares another example.
MVP Program
Three years ago, his department launched Buddy Baseball, a five-week local league for disabled youth. During that debut, one young man—Dantae—wasn’t into the games. “Day one, he didn’t want anything to do with sports,” Pete says. “He’d cry in the corner—every week he’d come; he didn’t want anything to do with it, but he still participated.”
But during the season’s final week, something miraculous happened in the nine-year-old’s mind. “He hit the ball, and he ran to first, and I remember him turning to his mom, and he said, ‘Mom, this is fun,’” Pete recalls. Seeing Dantae’s mother’s eyes tear up when he mentioned the moment to her at an awards ceremony was icing on the cake. “One little thing like that is pretty impressive.”
Another such moment involved Matthew, a hysterically crying, nonverbal teen, who had a similar turnaround when he began playing for the league.
“The other day, I just went to his Communion,” Pete says. “He runs up to me, and he says, ‘Hi Pete,’ and his face lights up when he sees me.” Buddy Baseball’s latest season debuted May 6, featuring six teams and more than 100 participants, ages 3 through 25.
Buddy Baseball is the department’s grand slam. “That’s our biggest program,” Pete says.
“And what I love about it the most is that the entire community of Bayonne is 100 percent behind it. Everyone supports it. We have a huge crowd on opening day. To see the kids in their full uniforms—socks, pants, jerseys, hat. Words cannot describe how amazing it really is.”
Buddy Baseball is an extended family. “We really are so close-knit now,” he says. “The parents are friends, the kids are friends. We don’t stress the winning. It’s about being friends first and understanding good sportsmanship and enjoying the moment and what we’re doing together as a whole.”
Designated Dad
While only three kids on the planet can claim Pete as their biological father, he’s definitely a father figure—though his gelled hair and youthful energy might seem better suited for a surfing gig than sharing the national pastime with kids.
His legacy? “I want the children to be in the spotlight,” he says.
Pete’s road to supervisor began as a recreational camp counselor for the town, when he was between the ages of 14 and 19.
“I knew I wanted to do something with children,” Pete says. “I actually was going to go to school and become a teacher.” But, “my path just led me to business and sports management, and that’s just the path I went.”
In college, he worked in Bayonne’s recreational department part-time, as he finished classes. After graduating, he worked for the town full-time for around seven years. Then his predecessor retired, giving Pete just the opening he wanted. He started as director in 2008.
It’s a perfect fit for Pete, who played baseball in all the town’s local leagues, including the Bayonne PAL and Bayonne Little League.
He still plays in Staten Island, and helps coach Matthew’s team. He played college baseball at New Jersey City University.
“Growing up, I saw all these great programs, and now I’m fortunate to help those programs as well,” he says.
On the Roster
Since starting, Pete has launched new programs such as wrestling and lacrosse. To help parents and children bond better, his department initiated “Parent and Me” programs for children as young as 2.
Activities include Parent and Me soccer, teeball, and arts and crafts. “It’s just a great program, because it brings the family closer together, and it’s important for the parents to partake in activities with their children,” Pete says. “It means a lot for the kids as well.”
The department also offers swimming lessons for special youth through the summer at the 16th Street pool.
What’s the game plan for Pete? “I’m really looking forward to meeting new children,” he says. “Meeting new kids who are coming up, who are getting older, who are going to participate in sports. That next generation we’ll get to meet and hopefully play a part in their lives.”
At Gorman Field on that warm April afternoon, Nicholas burst into tears whenever his siblings didn’t share a baseball with him. Was it just a baby going through the “Gimme!” phase? Or a future MLB star decades from taking the Amadeo name to the next level?
Time will tell.—BLP
