Swing for the Fences
Jeffers Park needs donors to step into batter’s box
"Play Ball” will be heard by early May at the new 40-acre Jeffers Park Development Project, according to leaders of a public-private-volunteer partnership. The park will feature five ball diamonds surrounding a pavilion/concession building, as well as a playground and trails.
The project launched in early 2014 when Eau Claire Parks and Recreation Director Phil Fieber approached two local sports leagues – Eau Claire National Little League and Eau Claire Fastpitch – as well as concerned citizens about the availability of enough ball fields.
“The fields are in place and the grass is growing, and there’s much to be done before opening day.” – Greg Hanson, Eau Claire National Little League
Jeffers Park is a mile north of the North Crossing and Jeffers Road intersection, across the road from Plant Marketing and its greenhouses galore. To date, the project team has raised close to $400,000, and it aims to reach its goal of $500,000-plus well before opening day in May.
Last July, the Reit family, which owns May’s Floral at the other end of Jeffers Road as well as Plant Marketing, made a home run to start the actual construction of the park with a $100,000 donation celebrating its 40th anniversary in business. In the process, it earned the naming rights for Reit Family Fields.
“Our family chose to support the park because it’s right here in our neighborhood,” said Larry Reit, owner of May’s Floral and Plant Marketing. “One of my employees who coaches the kids let me know that they were having challenges finding ball fields to play due to a shortage. Plus, I have eight grandkids. Most of them play softball or volleyball. Everyone’s kids are our future, and this seemed like a great way to support our community.”
Next up at bat: Tim Olson, secretary-treasurer of Royal Construction, along with several contractors from the Chippewa Valley Homebuilders Association, provided the sweat equity and materials to make the concession stand building a reality.
“I’m a longtime coach of Babe Ruth and Little League, almost 20 years,” shared Olson. “So I have a soft spot for youth sports. We were able to get others involved and on board and hundreds of hours of labor were donated during the construction of the concession stand building. I’m so grateful for everyone who saw the value.”
Greg Hanson, vice president and tournament coordinator of the Nationals, has been in the Nationals organization since 2004 when his oldest was a tee-ball player. “The city has been great to work with and has helped a ton,” he said. “We started our fundraising, and away we went. We’ve raised approximately $400,000 and have another $200,000 to go. The fields are in place and the grass is growing, and there’s much to be done before opening day.”
Another project co-chairperson (and parent and coach to baseball and softball players), Jodi Thesing-Ritter, pointed out that this field will be the first that boys and girls will both be able to use. In the recent past, the girls have not had a home field, while the boys have had three dedicated parks in Eau Claire. So having Jeffers Park in the mix will “level the playing field” for girl softball players. In addition, Thesing-Ritter pointed out the economic multiplier effect of having additional fields for tournaments that might want have come to the Chippewa Valley. “Even if someone is not directly involved with little league or fast pitch softball, Jeffers Park will benefit many who live in the Chippewa Valley,” she said. “This has been a labor of love for me and my family, where softball is a family affair. Both my husband and I both play and coach, and our children – two girls and two boys ages 8 to 19 – are all involved in softball and baseball. We just need to raise the additional dollars before spring comes to make the park fully operational.”
To learn more about the project and how you can give, go to facebook.com/JeffersPark. There, you will find a link to a fundraising page on the Eau Claire Community Foundation website. You can also call the foundation at (715) 552-3801.
