Chief among the local organizations involved with the World Series is Wake Forest Baptist Health, who has partnered with Southwest Athletics as the title sponsor of the two events. “You see the depth of service at WFBH and top notch care that a teaching hospital can bring to the community. It’s a great partnership. Both of our organizations are here to be of service, to better the lives of those in our community” Marzano said. With a title sponsor and exact dates for the event now complete, Leonard and Marzano have begun preparing for the extensive work required around the complex in preparation for the 12-team tournament. Work includes upkeep to the complex’s fields, which Marzano called a “constant battle.”
Southwest is hoping to bring back as many longtime supporters of the organization as possible for a hand in the process. “We want all of those legacy players who grew up playing ball out here to come back for a week or two and offer their time,” Marzano said. “We’re going to need to engage everybody we can from a volunteer standpoint.”
“The key is you do it right, and then you do it every couple of years,” he said. “It puts Clemmons on the map at that point as a destination. That’s what all the hotels want; that’s what all the businesses want. They don’t just want one-off type events, they want to be a destination, and we’re doing everything we can to create that.”
After completion of a successful tournament, Marzano said, Southwest will become a prime candidate for many of Babe Ruth’s future national events.
For more information about the 2017 Babe Ruth World Series or to inquire about sponsorship or volunteering, contact Barry Leonard at bleonard7@triad.rr.com.
From there, odd jobs around the complex will be plentiful. “It is going to take a community to pull this off,” Marzano said. “Any role that somebody would want to fill, we’ve got a job for them.” Leonard said he is reaching out to local Crosby Scholars and Boy Scout troops for help with preparation, and Forsyth Community 2017 |
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