Don "Dunk" Dunker, 89, former major league baseball scout...
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Donald J. Dunker influenced young athletes for more than 50 years
He was a World War II veteran, a professional baseball player and a
successful coach. But what Don "Dunk" Dunker will be remembered for is
his loyalty to the Noblesville community and the friendships he
developed.
Dunker died Thursday at Riverview Hospital. He was 89. Dunker had hip
surgery June 4 and never fully recovered, said family friend Judy
Timberman.
In fact, Dunker said it himself about two weeks before his death, "The
old right-hander is rounding third and heading home."
Dunker was a legend in his own time. His influence on young athletes
was memorialized in 2004 with the naming of Donald J. Dunker Field,
the diamond where Noblesville High School plays its home baseball
games at Hazel Dell Elementary School.
In 1950, he started baseball and golf programs at Noblesville Junior
High and was one of the founders of the Noblesville Babe Ruth Baseball
League. He became varsity baseball coach in the 1960s and also coached
freshman football and basketball. His teams won two state
championships in the National Amateur Baseball Tournament, the Babe
Ruth National Championship Tournament in 1977, The National Amateur
Congress in 1977, the Palomino Tournament in 1984, the Connie Mack
Tournament in 1982, 1983, and 1988, and the Stan Musial Tournament in
1988, 1992, and 1997. His team advanced to the finals in the Amateur
World Series in 1992 and 1993.
His former players remember him with fondness and appreciation for the
positive influence he had on their lives. Dunker helped negotiate a
professional baseball contract for Terry Coomer, who was a star left-
handed pitcher for Noblesville in the 1970s.
"From the time I was 15 to the time I graduated from high school, he
was like a father to me," Coomer said. "He was a real caring person.
For baseball in the '60s, '70s and '80s, there wasn't anyone better
than Don Dunker."
Coomer said the love Dunker had for his players continued on after
their playing days.
"When I was playing for the Giants, he would always call me to ask how
I was doing and to ask if he could do anything to help," Coomer said.
"He always remembered my girls' birthdays and graduations with phone
calls and cards."
Noblesville High School Athletic Director Steve Hurst recalls the
mutual respect and admiration Dunker and his former players had for
one other.
"I was around Don a lot when we had the field-naming ceremony," Hurst
said. "What impressed me was how all his former players came up and
made comments about how much they appreciated him as a coach and what
a great leader he was.
"And, it impressed me how he reacted to his players, he remembered all
of them," Hurst added. "He obviously meant a lot to the community with
all the success he brought and all the kids he influenced. It is a
real loss for our community."
Dunker also made an impression on recent friendships he developed as a
resident of Riverwalk Commons since June 2005.
"He was a bright spirit," said Heather Hyde, business office manager
of Riverwalk Commons. "He will be deeply missed by residents and the
staff. He loved to show off his trophies and pictures, and he always
talked about how much he enjoyed it all."
Success followed 'Dunk'
As a pitcher at Indiana University, he was Big Ten Most Valuable
Player in 1941 and was the winner of the Balfour Award, IU's highest
athletic award. Dunker completed two degrees at IU, and coached the IU
freshman baseball team.
During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy. After Pearl Harbor,
the Navy discovered that of the 4,000 sailors who lost their lives
from that attack, over half died because they did not know how to
swim. Dunker was instrumental in establishing a program to teach
swimming to all sailors before they were assigned to a ship.
During the war, there were a number of major league players, including
Stan Musial and Ted Williams, who formed an All-Service All-Star team.
Dunker was the only college player to be part of that team. This team
played all of the major league teams and most minor league teams to
raise more than $3 million to help needy families who had lost
husbands and fathers in combat.
After the war, Dunker played with the Chicago Cubs organization for a
time, but an injury to his foot during his military service shortened
his professional career. He was a major league baseball scout for the
Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles
Dodgers, and New York Mets. He was inducted into the Indiana Baseball
Hall of Fame in 1984. In 2002, the governor of Indiana presented him
with the prestigious Sagamore of the Wabash award.
By Rob Borders