“You’re not a true Iowa Stater unless you play broomball at two in the morning.”

To the man who spoke this sentence, broomball isn’t just an intramural – it’s a way of life.

Garry Greenlee, associate director of intramural sports and facility operations, has been involved in intramurals at Iowa State for more than 25 years, but it hasn’t been all fun and games.

It’s been quite a road to get there, too.

Greenlee attended Murray State University from 1974 to ’78 and earned his bachelor’s degree in health and physical education. His time in college gave him more than a higher education – he started a family, as well.

That’s when Greenlee started officiating intramural games as a way to make money. During his junior and senior years, he refereed high school basketball games.

“I was either going to be a P.E. or health teacher until I really got excited and found these sports officials in college,” Greenlee said.

He attended the University of Southern Mississippi to get a master’s in sports administration, and worked with officials during his graduate assistantship.

His experience at Southern Mississippi landed him a job as the intramural personnel coordinator at Iowa State in July 1979, where Greenlee trained officials.

In 1994, Greenlee was named the intramural director, and in 2003 became the associate director of intramural sports and facility operations. Greenlee’s first 10 years at Iowa State had primarily revolved around officiating, and the last 15 have focused on scheduling and coordinating intramurals.

“The [biggest challenge] is the sheer volume and pace that we kind of expect and has been a tradition in the Recreation Services department here,” Greenlee said.

That’s where his coworkers become increasingly important.

Linda Marticke, intramural coordinator, helps Greenlee schedule the hundreds of teams that sign up for each of the more than 50 intramural events.

“It’s detailed and time-consuming,” Greenlee said.

Technology has helped eliminate some of the stressful parts of their work. Greenlee and Marticke no longer stay until 2 a.m. running copies of tournament schedules and stuffing them in mailing envelopes. Everything is done online, but Greenlee said with that came a non-stop stream of e-mails that must be answered.

Marticke, who has been at Iowa State for 30 years, has worked with Greenlee throughout his tenure at Iowa State.

“I love working with Garry [Greenlee],” Marticke said. “He’s always positive and he’s a good listener. He pays attention to what you have to say.

“He truly cares about people.”

It’s those qualities that help Greenlee when he comes up against challenges within the department, and in his work with students, she said.

As the adviser for the Recreation Services Executive Council, Greenlee oversees the group of students who act as the appeals board for intramurals and give input on intramural sports.

“Garry [Greenlee] has a lot of ideas,” said Thomas McHale, senior in economics and president of the council. “He has a lot of experience. He keeps us on topic and helps us think outside of the box.”

Work ethic and creative-thinking skills are other traits McHale has learned from Greenlee.

“He’s just a great guy,” McHale said. “He’s a definite asset to Iowa State. Without him, I don’t know how they’d function.”

Working with students and training officials is the capstone of Greenlee’s job, and a few of Greenlee’s officiating students have even gone on to prestigious officiating careers. One former student is a Major League Baseball umpire, and several others have become Division I college basketball referees.

“Everybody’s a success story, but those who stay in the system are special,” Greenlee said.

Last summer, Greenlee had a party to celebrate his 25th year at Iowa State, and more than 100 former students and friends from seven states attended. A former student who lives in Saudi Arabia also came back to celebrate.

“My friends are the people who came up through the system,” Greenlee said.

Forging lifelong friendships with students is something important to Greenlee.

“He really likes to hear back from the alumni people that he’s helped with getting started in officiating,” said Landon Wolfe, Greenlee’s graduate assistant. “He gets really excited when they call or stop in when they’re in town.”

Wolfe, graduate student in educational leadership and policy studies, said he’ll be looking for jobs this spring and will stay in touch with Greenlee long after he leaves Iowa State.

“I’ve learned a lot from him about the program and stuff,” Wolfe said. “I’m applying for jobs where I’ll be doing the same kinds of things he is, so I’ll be looking to him for advice.”