The efforts, over the past five years, of Kevin Klingele, the City of New Albany and volunteers have finally culminated into a summer of baseball at the brand-new Miracle League of New Albany Field.
The Miracle League, a national organization dedicated to granting every child the opportunity to play baseball, hosts games that are rostered children with special needs and, on occasion, adults. An ever-growing and influential organization, Miracle League’s reach covers the nation, with more than 200 participating chapters.
Miracle League of Central Ohio was started in Dublin in 2005, and has been changing lives ever since at its Darree Fields diamond.
Upon hearing from his patients about the vast impact Miracle League has had in the Dublin community, Klingele, the chief of orthopedic surgery at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, wanted to see the same positive change in the New Albany community.
Bringing the league to New Albany didn’t come without its fair share of challenges. Klingele has been working on the league since 2017, but getting set back each potential opening season. Finally, his vision, five years in the making, came to fruition this year with the help of the city of New Albany-Plain Local Joint Park District. The district offered land for what would soon become the park within ADS Stadium off of Fodor Road. New Albany City Council approved the parks district’s offering price, which totaled $10 for a 20-year lease.
Corporate and private donors funded the $1 million field’s completion.
Klingele is inspired by the immense support he’s received from the community.
“(The efforts) all come together when you’re sitting out there and these kids are smiling walking up to the field,” he says. “I’m watching parents tear up, and I’m watching grandma and grandpa see the kids play baseball for the first time.”
The league utilizes a “buddy system,” which pairs each kid with a community volunteer. Volunteers come from all over central Ohio to ensure each event runs smoothly over its 10-week season.
“Probably the biggest effect, honestly, is on the volunteers and the buddies and the community members,” Klingele says. “You see it all come together, and you watch these games, and you just
become involved in it. There’s so much satisfaction, and it’s really beyond words that you can express how much it means to so many people. It’s really a big community effort.”
Klingele is grateful for the local organizations that have donated both time and resources to make the field the perfect setting for kids to carry out their baseball dreams. He’s confident the park can continue to grow in the coming years, becoming a space where kids can have fun in ways beyond baseball.
“We’ve had a real good operational team and people who have stepped up to make the first season a real huge success,” he says. “We can’t wait to do it again. We learned there is a huge demand for this. Our goal is to double (participation) and fill a full Saturday and not just a few games.”
Klingele is confident that showing up once is enough to compel volunteers to return each week and deepen their connection with their buddy.
“My advice to anybody would be to just come out and watch,” Klingele says. “Not even volunteer, just come out and experience it.”
Tyler Kirkendall is an assistant editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at tkirkendall@cityscenemediagroup.com.
