CullmanTimes.com, Cullman, Alabama

Local Sports

July 2, 2009

EXTREME MAKEOVER

By Justin Graves

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  • A group of Good Hope baseball players help local landscaper Archie Hand lay sod on the team's new field Thursday morning.

    GOOD HOPE

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GOOD HOPE — Mitch Witcher glanced around the open field located below the football stadium on Good Hope High’s campus, pointing to specific areas where future projects will take place.

The Good Hope baseball coach has it all planned out. That’s because he’s had plenty of time to think about it.

These potential projects? They’re ideas Witcher has for Good Hope’s new baseball field.

“Over here, I want to build a bullpen for the visiting team” Witcher said. “And we’re going to put two bullpens on the home side for us, with a little stool for me sit on, too. Yeah, that sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?”

Sounds like a plan, coach. But there is one problem: The completion of Good Hope’s new baseball field has been delayed for months due to a lack of local funds in the Cullman County school system.

Or at least that was the case earlier this year. That problem has been resolved.

With the help of Daystar Church, the construction of Good Hope’s new baseball field is once again underway. The facility should be completed before the start of next season.

Earlier this year, Daystar held a bass tournament — sponsored by 24 local businesses — to help raise money for the completion of Good Hope’s baseball field.

Using the funds raised by the charity event, Daystar purchased enough sod to finish the playing surface.

With the help of several Good Hope players, local landscaper Archie Hand began to lay the sod purchased by Daystar Thursday morning. The new playing surface will be completed today.

“We had great success (with our bass tournament), with several fishermen and volunteers coming out to help,” Daystar member Leslie Lawson said in a press release. “Harris Sod in Huntsville was generous enough to give us the sod at basically his cost.

“We’re grateful for people like him and all the other sponsors and volunteers who are out there in our communities. They help get things accomplished for our schools.”

As a church located in the town of Good Hope, Daystar has adopted the local school.

“Our schools need the community,” Lawson said in the press release. “They don’t always have big projects, but there’s always something that can be done.

“If our churches and community will pull together and help our schools, there’s so much that would get accomplished, leaving money to go somewhere else when needed.”

Once the sodding has been completed, the only thing Good Hope’s baseball field will need is a fence and backstop. Witcher hopes to have that issue resolved before next season.

“It’s all starting to come together, and it’s looking really good,” Witcher said. “The next big concern is getting a fence around this place. That’s the next big issue.

“But once we get that taken care of, we’ll be good to go.”

The new field was supposed to have been finished before the start of last season, but the project was halted due to a lack of funds. That’s why the Raiders had to play every game on the road this spring.

“Hopefully we’ll have everything up and ready to go before next season, that way we’ll have a place to play home games,” said Witcher, who has led Good Hope to back-to-back appearances in the Class 3A playoffs. “We appreciate what everyone has done … helping us get this finished.

“I think we’re all excited about having our own home field. It’s like I told the guys, this is something they can be proud of … all of this is for them.”

‰ Justin Graves can be reached by phone at 734-2131, ext. 257 or by e-mail at jgraves@cullmantimes.com

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