Miracle League to build special needs ball field Published May 22, 2013 By Staff Sgt. Maria Bowman 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- "The one constant through all the years has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, is a part of our past. It reminds us of all that once was good, and what could be again." This quote by James Earl Jones in "Field of Dreams" represents the attitude of the Miracle League of Fairview Heights as they prepare to build their own field of dreams. Miracle League of Fairview Heights provides children and adults with special needs an opportunity to come together and play baseball. This organization is preparing to build a ball field for people with special needs, with hopes to have the project completed by the end of summer. "Having the Miracle League field here in Fairview Heights will foster the community among the residents and at Scott," said Brenda Wagner, Miracle League of Fairview Heights founder. "This project has become bigger than I could have ever dreamed." The baseball field will be unique in that it will have a rubber surface, which will allow wheelchairs or walkers to glide across the field without obstructions. It will not only benefit children and adults with special needs, but wounded warriors as well. "Our servicemembers who go overseas and come back maimed or wounded, or are now a special needs person, have probably played sports before, and the biggest part of an injury like that is that you can no longer participate in the activities the same way you used to," Wagner said. "This field will give them an avenue for recreation that doesn't exist in this area right now. Now they will have baseball." Instead of using a regular baseball, the teams will use a wiffle ball, which is perforated, light-weight, and rubbery. "The wiffle ball won't hurt the kids as bad as if they get hit by a softball," Wagner said. "Wounded warriors will also be less likely to hit it out of the park. The kids will hit the ball off a tee because hand and eye coordination is difficult a lot of times for special needs children." Wagner said every special needs person will need to have a "buddy," or someone to be paired up with for the entire season. "Pairing up the buddy and the special needs person gives the buddy a chance to know the need of the special needs person they are working with," Wagner said. "If someone can't get hit by the ball, or someone can't stop a ball, or throw a ball, the buddy would know what to do. Typically, we want the players to play as much as they possibly can, but we need someone to assist them." Senior Airman Tim Burnett, 375th Medical Group environmental engineer, volunteers with this program. "This program is a good way to interact with kids with special needs and it makes them happy," he said. "Being a mentor to these kids is rewarding for them and for me. This ball field is an additional opportunity for families to keep their loved ones with special needs active." For further information on this program visit www.miracleleagueplaysball.com or send an email to safathm@yahoo.com.