Local Club Steps Up for the ‘Start A Rally For Optimist Field’ Community Fundraising Effort
The Highland Optimist Club hit another home run recently with a $12,000 donation to a local group raising money for improvements to Optimist Field at Glik Park.
“Our group of parents, Optimist members and community leaders created the ‘Start A Rally’ for Optimist Field community fundraising campaign late in 2018 with a vision of making improvements to Optimist Field,” said the campaign’s Marketing Committee Chair Adam Koishor. “We want to make the field Highland’s premier baseball facility, and the reinvestment from the Optimist Club really helps us start the rally.”
Optimist Club President Rick Duft and Treasurer Bill Wagner recently presented the check to Koishor and members of the Optimist Field Improvement Group, which is the lead committee to determine how the money raised for the field will be used for improvements.
“We realize that the city, the school district and the Legion program simply do not have the budgets to make improvements and maintain the field at a top-tier level,” Duft said. “The club donated money when the field was originally built, and now we are reinvesting in Optimist Field.”
The Highland High School varsity baseball team and the American Legion Lee Iten Post 439’s baseball teams call Optimist Field home.
The Optimist Field Improvement Group includes Highland Director of Parks & Recreation Mark Rosen, Highland Senior Legion Coach Harry Painter, Highland High School Varsity Baseball Coach Joel Hawkins, baseball parent Jeremy Willis, and Optimist Club member Phil Mason.
“The donation from the Optimist Club along with other funds we have raised helped us get the improvement projects started,” Hawkins said. “We have removed the infield playing surface and it is being improved with a new dirt surface and a new natural grass surface. When it is done, the infield will rival the fields of major college and minor league stadiums.”
The Start A Rally group is actively seeking sponsors and donors toward the field improvement campaign.
“We are fortunate to live in a great community where businesses, organizations, and individuals are willing to support things that make Highland what it is,” Koishor added. “We have a committed group of parents who are offering their time and energy to the marketing and fundraising efforts.”
Phase one of the effort for improvements to Optimist Field at Glik Park started in June of 2018 when a new scoreboard was installed, doubling the size of the board. The next phase of the effort includes the infield upgrade.
“The Start A Rally campaign is designed to raise money now and in the future,” Koishor said. “We want to make sure when the future groups of parents who have kids playing baseball are involved, the campaign is ongoing to keep Optimist Field a premier baseball facility.”
The Start A Rally for Optimist Field campaign is seeking everything from three-year corporate sponsorships to small individual donations for the field.
“We are seeking business sponsorships and individual donations,” Koishor noted. “We hope that individuals or families with ties to Highland baseball will support the campaign.”
In addition to the upgrade of the infield playing surface, future projects that the Field Improvement Group hope to complete include fencing in front of the dugouts, improved bullpen areas, a batter’s eye in centerfield, a sound system and expanded stadium seating.
“We are excited about the Legion teams playing on the new infield surface this summer,” Painter noted. “We are also looking forward to plans for additional improvements. We truly appreciate the Optimist Club making the donation to this campaign.”
For more information about the Start A Rally for Optimist Field campaign, to become a sponsor, or to make a donation online, visit www.rallyforhighlandbaseball.com.
The Highland Optimist Club, which was chartered on December 15, 1948, donates to many projects and events in the community that benefit children. The local club also host an annual high school basketball shootout each January at Highland High School, and its pizza wagon is a staple at local festivals.
Pictured from left are American Legion Lee Iten Post 439 Coach Harry Painter, Highland High School Varsity Coach Joel Hawkins, Optimist Club President Rick Duft, Campaign Marketing Committee Chair Adam Koishor and Optimist Club Treasurer Bill Wagner.
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