The Need:

The Junedale Baseball Field is located in the Glen Park Neighborhood. Twenty-five percent (25%) of the Glen Park neighborhood residents are children. The Glen Park community of Gary is one of the most underserved communities [1] in the city. For more than a decade relatively no after school, summer or recreational activities have existed in this community. There are no safe, usable parks for children to play in in the entire community. Junedale serves as the only baseball field available for play in the entire southern end of Gary.

After meeting with residents, community leaders, and Junedale alumni it has been determined that the Junedale 2.0 project will breathe new life into the community and provide social interaction, recreational options, physical activity, and athletic opportunities to youth that inspire them and promote their personal growth and development. We believe that this effort will also help us to rebuild, revive, and reconnect youth in Gary to baseball. Finally, in a city filled with blight and plagued by negative press, a beautiful baseball field will help to eliminate the negative stigma associated with Gary, Indiana, encourage teams from outside the city to come play ball with our kids, and be a catalyst for lifelong memories and friendships.

The Project:

A Community Gathering Place

Alumni of Junedale testify that historically this field was a unifying force in the community. The Junedale field will once again give residents a place to gather and an opportunity to cheer children on with one loud, unified voice. There will also be a walking path around the perimeter of the field that serves as an impetus for residents to come out, walk, talk, and build real “community.”

A Place of Beauty

In a city plagued by blight, this new field will restore beauty. That beauty will attract community residents. Our dream is for a brand-new field with immaculate amenities, covered bleacher seating, a new press box and concession stand, fencing, lighting, 10 years’ worth of groundskeeping, and maintenance, scholarships for youth to play.

A Place to Grow Together

Gary, Indiana is known as a food desert. As a bonus the field will feature a community garden that will provide fresh fruits and vegetables to local residents. The garden adjacent to the field will allow the community to literally “grow” together, help to eliminate hunger, [3] and serve as an oasis in this food desert.

A Place of Victory for the City

We also believe that this project can be the catalyst for phase two which would be to build a playground next to the field. We believe that this field will be a catalyst for change in a community and a city that needs a victory. This field will not only be a place of victory for our children but will be a symbol of victory for everyone in the city.

Sustainability:

It is important to the community that sustainability be built into this initiative. The Junedale 2.0 project is designed for long-term sustainability. Much of this comes in the form of the community’s commitment to monitor, protect and contribute to the upkeep of the field. We have partnered with local community leaders, residents that live directly across the street from the field and the surrounding community to ensure that the field is monitored 24 hours a day, the grass is cut, and the field is maintained.

Over the long-term play at the field will be supported by ongoing fundraising efforts and an annual fund strategy. Collaborators will seek support in the form of cash, in-kind donations, grants, sponsorships and revenue generating activities to ensure that Junedale thrives for generations to come.