For the baseball team at Alamo Heights, the love for the game of baseball pushes them, every day. That’s why, when they heard a baseball field across town needed a little help, they answered the call right off the bat.
“The kids were not able to step on the field because of the weeds,” said Stephanye Almaguer, a volunteer coordinator at the children’s home Boysville. “We were very concerned because some of the kids have allergies, so it was hard for them to come out and play on the field with the overgrown grass.”
That's when the Alamo Heights Mules came out of the bullpen for the save. They repainted benches, realigned the field, pulled weeds, and replaced the dirt. They also fixed up the Boysville sign out front.
Adam Parker, a player on the team, says that he uses baseball as an escape from everyday life.
“I think that’s important for these kids to have something to get their mind off of what they are going through,” he said.
Head Coach Jason Thompson said that the project was entirely volunteer-based. Still, all 60 boys showed up for their chance to give back.
“It’s bigger than the game of baseball,” Coach Thompson said. “It’s about doing great things for other people.”
Even parents got involved. Baseball dad Charlie Robinson started a GoFundMe page to fund paint, supplies, and equipment. They raised $2,500.
With all the rain we’ve had, it takes a lot of work to keep up fields like this,” Robinson explained. “They pretty much just had to start from scratch.”
The field isn’t 100 percent complete just yet. There are still some finishing touches left, which they’ll finish next week. But for the Mules, it already feels like they’ve hit a home run.
“It feels fantastic to know what I’ve helped people,” Parker said. “And that you’re going to make their days to come a lot better.”
Almaguer says that the new field will help the kids at Boysville stay on the ball.