Waterford Township couple seeking public's help restoring baseball field
A married couple in Waterford Township, Michigan, is working hard to restore a baseball field that used to mean so much to the community. And it can again, with the community's help.
The oft-quoted phrase, "If you build it, he will come," is what Katie and Andy Belliotti are hoping for as they work to restore Freehan Field.
"The man who built this, Joe Humbaugh, he put in all these sprinkler heads," Katie Belliotti said. "He dug a well. It was, like, the most well-maintained field in Oakland County when Mike Harris had the field recently. And so, we have big shoes to fill, but we want to fill it."
The field is named after a Detroit Tigers legend.
"They started building the field in 1972, and in 1975, they had their first baseball game, and Bill Freehan threw the first pitch," Katie Belliotti said
The Belliottis only moved in recently. The baseball field in the backyard was a selling point.
"I saw the baseball field, and I got goosebumps, like, 'Oh my gosh.' Like, just seeing the future. 'What could this be?'" Katie Belliotti said.
Katie runs drills in the field with her daughter and a friend. The girls are part of the softball team called The Lady Outlaws.
"Three years ago, there was no softball or baseball in elementary or middle school in Waterford, and so I partnered with little league to get it all back into the elementary schools and middle schools," Katie Belliotti said.
Andy Belliotti and his son were working on leveling the pitcher's mound recently.
"We killed the grass and then we just got to level it out and grade it," Andy Belliotti said. "Biggest thing we got to do is get a new backstop so we don't get foul balls into the neighbor's yard there."
The restoration effort has clearly come a long way in just a few short weeks.
"I hope to have it done by next year, teams playing here," Andy Belliotti said.
Plans are in full swing to make that happen, including a GoFundMe to raise money.
They plan to host fundraisers and start a nonprofit organization called the Freehan Field Foundation.
"We're just, really, we're right in the process of getting that started. So, if corporations want to donate to us, we'll put their logo up on signs around the field, and we just, we want to support our community while they support us," Katie Belliotti said.
And with your help you can make Freehan Field, 'the place dreams come true' once again.
