I married a Clarendon County man who loves sports. Football, baseball, basketball, golf – you name it and we attend it.
This summer, we were involved in baseball games at the Clarendon County recreational field (J.C. Britton Park). Our grandson, Jackson English, played minor league baseball two nights a week, and his brother, Jason, played major league two nights a week. Our son, Todd, coached both teams. Therefore, A.C. and I were at the field four nights a week.
This is a tremendous amount of baseball and lots of hot dogs for dinner!
It was easy to get attached to these young kids, so we traveled to Union for the weekend to watch the 11- and 12-year-old Clarendon County Dixie Major All-Stars play. My grandson, Jason, did not make the All-Stars, but Todd coached four of the All-Stars and Jason was their biggest cheerleader.f Having played most of the summer with or against these young men, Jason was a great supporter, as was our family.
The team was wonderful.
The parents were supportive, as were the grandparents and friends who came to watch them play ball. I can’t say enough good things about the coaches, Bo Olsen, Jackie McIntosh and Tracy Geddings, or the Rev. Kirk Carlisle, who led the team and friends in a church service on Sunday morning.
I can’t say enough about how proud I was of Clarendon County and its recreational facility that helped these young men get to the state playoffs. The last time a team from Clarendon County went to state was in 2008. I was especially proud because we had two teams from Clarendon County – Team Clarendon and Team Turbeville.
I am thankful for all of the coaches who selflessly gave of their time to help our kids. They deserve much gratitude from all of us, because it takes much time and effort to produce a team.
I am proud that Clarendon County has a recreational facility and LeBon Joye and staff to manage it. However, when I saw the complex in Union, I was filled with envy. This facility was similar to Patriot Park in Sumter, but larger. This is what we need for our kids in Clarendon County.
For this to happen, we need a dream, a plan and a leader. Surely we can provide something like this in Clarendon County for our children. I wish someone would step up to the plate and help us organize and get a plan. We can make this happen if we all work together.
I am a proud supporter of these kids.
ANN ENGLISH
Manning
