We are going to start scheduling divisional clean up days on Saturdays starting this coming weekend. Where we ask all the players from the assigned division to come out and help pick up garbage, clean out dugouts and general tidying of the park. We will be sending out the schedule through the team parents shortly. And of course there will be donuts once the clean up is done! And before you think “groan how do I convince my kids to come out and clean on a Saturday morning??” let me tell you a story….
I had an interesting experience during fall ball last fall….our team was playing at another park (that shall remain nameless) and I was manning the dugout….and the players started talking about how gross and dirty the dugout was. They pointed out several things on the floor and on the walls….and then one of them said “we would never let our dugout look like this at Hampton” and several players chimed in, “oh no never, this is gross we wouldn’t want our park to look like that, our park and dugouts are always clean”….and then a few talked about how they helped to pick up garbage and how Alison gave them candy bags and how fun it is. I asked them at one point “what do you think Curt would say about this dugout?” “OH! He would hate it, he would never allow our dugouts to look like this!”
I was quite struck by this conversation….here were a bunch of 8 to 10 year old players….who had such pride about their own park and how they help to keep it clean….and their sense of ownership over Hampton. And how they feel a sense of pride in how they contribute to keeping it a great park.
So it may just seem like a clean up…but really it’s an opportunity for the kids to feel like they contribute, that they own our park and to take pride in how clean and safe it is.
See you on Saturday morning!
Hampton Little League 