Softball gets shafted on ALL levels

This was a disappointing week for our beloved sport, Softball. From the Olympic level all the way down to the city of Decatur, TX.

First, on Thursday the IOC (International Olympic Committee) decided against including Softball in the 2016 Olympics. This was shocking to anyone that follows the sport or the USA team. In 2008, softball had much interest and the girls made great strides in the sport. To have nationwide exposure for a sport we have grown up loving was quite amazing in itself. To make it to the Olympics and come away with the Gold was simply a dream. Sadly, that dream won't see the light of day in 2016. Instead, the IOC has on it's short list for the 2016 Olympics Golf and Rugby. While this is great for their sport, we are still saddened by the IOC's decision to exclude softball. The ISF (International Softball Federation) did a great job with the BackSoftball Campaign. We still have the World Championships played by countries from around the world and those games shall go on. Team USA just won the title of World Champions this past July. Next July they will defend their title in Oklahoma City. USA & International Softball will live on and we will watch it on the Internet and cable channels throughout the year. Hopefully next Summer we will be in Oklahoma City to see USA play live!

Also sad and maybe more infuriating than disappointing because it's on the local level is the City of Decatur's lack of support for our youth...namely the girls. This year we are venturing out and having our very first Fall league for the girls of Wise County. The boys have had a fall league before and the turn-out has been really good. We've had several requests over the years to have a girls fall league, so this leads me to believe that not all girls play soccer, volleyball or cheer and those that do may want to do both. This is no different than in the Spring where we schedule games and practices around track, volleyball or other activities the girls participate in. Also, we have quite a few girls that are home schooled that love the opportunity to play a sport with other girls their age and get active in a team sport. So this is the year we will do it...with or without the support of our city.

The first sign of a problem was the resistance and the lack of communication between the Parks Director and myself. I've left messages and received no call backs. I did, however receive a message via one of the board members on the boys league to say that we could have Kenny Renshaw Park Monday nights, Friday nights and Saturdays. This park is the girls' primary park...the one where we built our very own concession stand because well, that's another issue entirely...the park where we have played for the past 10+ years...5 of those I've been involved with the girls softball. So, they gave us Monday nights (ok, that's decent) and Friday nights (Uh, Houston, we have a ginormous problem...are you serious? We are supposed to schedule softball games on Friday evenings...during football season...in Wise County? That's not going happen and you know it!) Oh, and we can have Saturdays (after Pee Wee Football and the girls cheering the football teams on that morning, of course). Why wouldn't we be able to use the park that is primarily known as the girls' softball park on other nights of the week like Tuesday or Thursday nights? Because the Men's Church & Rec leagues have taken it over. Don't get me wrong, I'm not down on the adult leagues...I do not hold any ill will towards Jay Layton or Clifton North...they are just doing their thing and playing. I play on these leagues during the summer, so I understand the enjoyment that comes from playing softball. I do believe, however that the youth should come first - NO MATTER WHAT! I'm upset with the city giving the adults preferential treatment over our girls by giving them field space and pushing us to other parks within the County...Bridgeport has called to offer their fields, Boyd has called me offering their fields. This is shameful that Decatur doesn't have enough fields available for all. It's clear that part of the problem could simply be resolved if they moved the adult leagues to Jones Park. Let the girls use the park where our concession stand stands. The solution for us this year is that we will not open our concession stand for our games as we will be traveling all over the county for our "home" games.

Let's get talk about Jones Park. Who, exactly was this park built for? The boys? The adult leagues? Who knows. It clearly wasn't thought out very well. It's not user friendly or accessible for players lugging full coolers, huge equipment bags, batting tees, etc. up and down that hill. We played some of our church co-ed games at Jones through out the summer, but it was only used for "over flow" so it begs the question: Who was this park built for? Bottom line is it certainly wasn't built for the girls. Harmon Park is strictly for the boy's and that's been clear for years. The girls should have a park for the girls, too to use year-round if they wish. Harmon Park is off limits to everyone but the boys...adults don't play there and the girls aren't allowed there either. Kenny Renshaw park is used by our girls, select teams, co-ed teams, men's leagues, the church leagues, & tournaments for charity and such. That's a lot of use for one little park that doesn't get much attention from the city. Ah, yes...they put up some foul poles, they worked our fields and mow our grass, but they did that for all the parks as well. We didn't get a new, clean concession stand built...we had to purchase our own, finish it out in order to be in a place fit to serve food out of without having to endure the stench and rat feces. Our bathrooms? They are portable toilets set up in the parking lot that I wouldn't let my dog use. They are filthy. Our fences around the fields? They are a mess...not safe at all as we had a girl get caught under one this past spring as she slid into home. Our dugouts are full of mud or dirt, the benches need sanding and to be re-painted. They give anyone that sits on them splinters & snags your clothing. If anyone has any doubt that what I'm saying is not the truth, feel free to go check out all the fields mentioned and make your own determination. Then I urge you to make a call to the City of Decatur and let them know you support the youth of Decatur and they deserve much better.

It's been widely understood that boys get more than the girls...that's been going on for years. It was this way even when I was a kid playing softball in Grapevine over 30 years ago. They built the new fields for the boys...when those got old they built new ones and the girls got pushed to the old boy hand-me-downs. We didn't complain, but it was obvious who the prize winners were.

Things have not changed a single bit over the years and the girls are still getting short-changed. Having a daughter, being active in her interests and being the president over an association, I have made it my personal vow to ensure the girls get what the boys do. They deserve equal treatment. When the boys fields get new conditioner, so should the girls. When the boys get break-away bases, the girls should too. Their safety is no less important than the boys, are they? They shouldn't get second best, they shouldn't be an after thought, they shouldn't get the consolation prize. And we shouldn't have to raise hell just to get what we rightly deserve! This is an outrage.

Decatur prides itself as being "a small-town family-friendly home town". Apparently, as long as your "family" consists of only boys. They feel it's perfectly ok to exclude the little girls that just want to play ball twice a year like their brothers do. Decatur needs to wake up and realize that the youth are the future. We, as adults, parents, leaders need to put a priority on our kids and get them involved in activities that help them grow into great young adults that will want to put roots down in a great city to grow their families up. Decatur needs to have a Rec center, a public pool, and decent basketball courts for our youth and families to play together.

Wise County girls will have a league and if we can't get our fields back or decent field times we will be able to play in the other towns on their fields...after all this Fall it will be a Wise County Softball League and our teams will have girls from all towns come together to play the sport they love.

One more thing before I step off my "soap-box"...IF, and that's a big if, Decatur had any foresight whatsoever, and IF Decatur had a planning committee for the Parks & Rec Department they would invest some tax-dollars into programs for our kids. Lord knows we pay enough in taxes there should be some for the kids and families. I could see a public swimming pool that will actually make money to help support itself (ie. Denton Waterworks), a rec center for families (indoor basketball courts, racquetball, an indoor track) where residents pay a yearly fee to use and our kids can play their basketball games there instead of relying upon the schools to provide their courts. We are in need of our soccer fields being repaired. They are in horrible shape. the netting is torn, their are holes the size of Dallas in front of each goal which become mud pits with a little rain. We need more fields for baseball AND softball so we could host tournaments that will bring money into our city. The oilfield is crawling as a snail's pace and we have all these nice, big new hotels sitting empty that would be put to great use if we could host tournaments and provide entertainment for families. Our City is growing...it's up to the City officials to make sure they are ready for it and plan accordingly. It's up to the City officials to ensure they provide our youth with activities that other cities around us provide for their residents. It's a shame we have to go to another town to swim in a public pool and apparently the girls will have to go to another town to play softball this fall.

I expect things to get better because we have great people that speak up for the youth in this city. It will take some time and some complaining and I'm just sick of it being the rule instead of the exception that the youth aren't treated better in this community.