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posted 02/06/2012 Registration for the Spring 2012 baseball season is now open!
Heading into the Spring 2012 season, I wanted to take a moment to communicate some events that are happening that affect our league. First, I would like to welcome the Gainesville / Haymarket Baseball League (GHBL) – formerly Gainesville District Little League (GDLL) and the Brentsville / Nokesville District Youth Baseball (BDYB) – also a former Little League affiliate to the Cal Ripken / Babe Ruth family. These organizations border our county and we will probably play some inter-league games with them this season. As always, we will try to keep travel to a minimum.
Our spring season will begin with practices March 17 and Games starting on April 14. It will end June 9.
Speaking of travel, Fauquier Babe Ruth is adding a travel only division to our league this season. We have seen many kids leave this league to play travel baseball and the Board feels that it is time to start serving the needs of those who have had to go outside the county in order to play competitive baseball. This travel division will not compete against our own in-house teams and will not be funded from our recreational league in any way. If you are interested in Travel Baseball, contact Barry Burke
I know that I sound like a broken record but FBR is running a financial deficit year over year due to increased costs of running this league. We know that times are tough for a lot of families that our league serves and we have always tried to keep the expenses at a minimum but in order to ensure the viability of the league and continue to provide a quality experience for the kids in our county, we have had to raise the registration fees slightly. We conducted a survey of the surrounding leagues registration fees and compared to the 5 other leagues that border our county, only 1 has lower rates. Many of you may not realize that no one involved in running this league is financially compensated to do so. FBR would not exist without the volunteer efforts of our managers and coaches, our board, and most importantly all of you parents who help out. As a board, we strive to provide the most positive experience possible for your child while teaching them the game of baseball and the important life lessons that come from being a part of a team. We are a volunteer non-profit organization and the only money that gets paid to individual people is for our professional umpires. We receive no financial support from Fauquier County and the Parks and Recreation Department that is supposed to maintain the fields has had severe budget cuts. In most other counties around us, the Parks and Recreation Departments completely maintain all the fields and facilities. Other leagues also have the ability to run concession stands at their centralized facilities which allows them to reduce fees.
We have added a new Fundraising Fee of $20 per player to ensure that FBR is fiscally able to continue for the years ahead. The first 500 players that register and pay will each receive 4 Chevy Raffle tickets to sell for $5 each which will in effect refund the fundraising fee. This fundraising fee will be in lieu of other fundraising events we have held in the past. To put it quite simply, the response for fundraising events has been poor. Fortunately, we have been given a tremendous opportunity for financial support from Chevrolet through our local Chevrolet dealership – Country Chevrolet – by means of equipment, cash, and the opportunity to sell raffle tickets for a new 2013 Chevy Malibu as well as other great prizes. Last year was the first time this opportunity was afforded to us and although it was beneficial to the league, it could have been much more so if we had 100% participation from our members. Through this program, Chevrolet provides us with 2000 raffle tickets to sell for whatever amount we want and we get to keep 100% of the money. The board has set the ticket price at $5.
Again, we acknowledge that our league would not be successful without the generous time volunteered by our managers, their assistants, score keepers, and every other parent who jumps in and helps with field preparation and all the other things that pop up over the course of every season. For this we are all grateful for the continued support you have given to us in the past and thank you in advance for the assistance for the upcoming season.
If you have any questions, suggestions, comments or concerns, please email me or the appropriate Board Member. We are all here to put your child in the best possible position to play baseball in a fun, safe, and educational setting.
Play Ball!
John Kemper
President Fauquier Babe Ruth
c/o: 2012 FBR Board
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