Youth in Ituna has a brand new diamond to play softball thanks largely to a contribution by the Jays Care Foundation.
The new diamond at the Ituna and District Regional Park hosted a three-team senior men’s exhibition series Saturday to bring some attention to the new diamond.
Dave Renkas a member of the Rhein Rockets, one of the teams involved, and an Ituna community member involved in the diamond project, was quick to point out the diamond is all about providing youth a better place to play.
At present Ituna boasts softball teams from U6 to U12 levels, and Renkas said the new field is a way to build on that program towards the future.
“It’s centered around the kids,” he said.
The project was initiated back in 2018 when the local regional park board took the step to apply for a grant from the Jays Care Foundation; a process Renkas said was thorough.
“There was a video application, and it had to be a registered charity, and the books had to be audited by an accountant,” he said.
And there was an element where the Foundation wanted to be sure the diamond would be viable long-term.
“You had to prove longevity, that somebody was going to be able to look after it after it was built,” said Renkas, who was among the drivers of the application along with Candace Keisis and Brittany Gent.
In the end the application was successful, and the Foundation made a donation of $48,500 to the diamond project.
The donation did not cover the entire cost, noted Renkas. The park added about $5000 to the pot, and he said there was more than $20000 in donated time and labour before the diamond was completed in 2019.
Renkas said while there has been a diamond on the spot, it was completely redone, with the infield dug out and re-established, including a sprinkler spigot for the pitching circle, and new dugouts and chain link fence installed.
Local companies really stepped up to help out, said Renkas, noting Bulych Landscaping, Rokosh Trucking and Dash Trucking as doing yeoman’s service to the project.
Typically the Jays Care Foundation would have already held an official opening, but that has been put off to next year due to COVID-19.
But, the mini tournament Saturday did bring a number of fans to watch the Rhein Rockets, Whitewood Falcons and Moose Jaw Canadians play a series of three games.
The pandemic has also meant no minor ball in Ituna this summer, Renkas said the new diamond awaits a return to play in 2021.
“There’s lots of positives for minor ball,” he said.
