Dess Schnur, a former president of the East Butler Baseball Association, holds a check from Dick's Sporting Goods that was awarded to the association to help supply it with equipment. Submitted photo
A parent nominated the East Butler Baseball Association for a Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation grant after her son had a good experience playing with the nonprofit when it was still hosting games on fields in East Butler.
East Butler Baseball Association received the $10,000 grant at the end of May, after Kelly Lowry, a trade compliance analyst for Dick’s, nominated the group. The grant can be used for things such as equipment, registration fees, field rentals and infrastructure, according to Lowry.
The funds will be helpful to the association, which is now hosting games at fields in Prospect.
Regan Mooney, a coach and secretary of East Butler Baseball Association, said the grant is relieving a “huge weight” from the shoulders of its administrators, who raise funds and look for sponsorships to pay for its needs.
“We’re still playing out at Prospect; they are still allowing us to share fields with them,” Mooney said. “We are paying them back by helping them mowing and painting and stuff.
“Having this helps us focus more on getting kids on the fields, making sure we have the safety gear … and making sure we can meet the needs of those kiddos who maybe couldn't afford it on their own.”
The Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation awards grants to nonprofits that provide youth sports to communities. Lowry said she was allowed earlier this year to nominate an organization of her choosing as an employee of Dick’s, and the East Butler Baseball Association was the first one that came to mind.
“My husband and my son both got to experience the East Butler baseball field and always mentioned how wonderful it was,” Lowry said. “It was a true pleasure and blessing to be able to do this for such a great organization.”
