Miracle League Baseball Field Gives Disabled Children Opportunity to Play and Grow

Soon disabled children in the Greater Lansing area will have the same opportunities to play and grow that other children have, thanks to the construction of the Miracle League Ballfield. The new facility will be the first of its kind in mid-Michigan and will have a rubberized surface suitable for wheelchairs and walkers, allowing disabled children to play in the age-old American pastime of baseball.

Thanks to a $394,200 grant from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Trust Fund, a $58,000 donation from the CASE Cares non-profit arm of CASE Credit Union, and a sizeable contribution from Dewitt Township, groundbreaking occurred on August 8 at Valley Farms Park. Actual construction should begin in the next few weeks.

Jake Boss Jr., the head coach of the Michigan State baseball team, says he plans to get his team involved with the Miracle League of Michigan once the park opens. The Miracle League was developed in Georgia more than a decade ago to give disabled children an opportunity to play baseball. CASE Cares will also hold a fundraiser on August 21 at the Dewitt Township Community Center and Granger Meadows Park. The Total Health Fitness Challenge entails a three-mile course with a 70-foot hill climb, a farmers walk, a cargo net bear crawl, a log leap, climbing walls and other obstacles. The fee is $37 in advance and $45 on race day. The race starts at 8 a.m. and more information can be found at the Total Health Fitness Challenge website.