CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS — There is an update on a story we did on the International Westside baseball park that was vandalized back in August. There were damages to the scoreboard and light poles throughout the field.
Nothing but gratitude and excitement here at the IWS ballpark off Greenwood now that the kids can officially play baseball at night once again. Thanks to viewers sharing our story back in August, a few local businesses and a volunteer gave their time and resources so the lights and electrical wiring could be fixed and the kids can "play ball!"
“It’s amazing how the network works so fast,” said ballpark volunteer Harvey Lopez. Lopez said within 24 hours of our original story, Bill Wright who works for Scott Electric Company, came out to IWS Field and fixed the damaged electrical box.
“He rented his own lift had a couple of guys here working on the power, and they got everything done in one day,” said Lopez.
Then the help started to pour in. Jonathon Smith, who is a branch manager for Texas First Rentals in Corpus Christi, reached out to Lopez. “They donated a 60-foot man lift,” said Lopez.
Then Raul Hernandez, Branch Manager at Grainger Industrial Supply in Corpus Christi, donated a case of light bulbs, and to help put the finishing touches, Raul Hernandez helped too. He is a Branch Manager at Grainger Industrial Supply in Corpus Christi who donated a case of light bulbs.
“Thanks also to Jerry Martinez, he’s another volunteer, he took the day off to come out here and replace all of the light bulbs that were blown out,” said Lopez.
Now that the kids can finally get back on the diamond and play at night, Mr. Harvey’s son who plays on one of the teams shares his gratitude to those who made it all happen.
“Thank you to all of the people that did this because they didn’t have to. They took time out of their day when they could have been doing another job making more money but they came to support the community where kids have fun and play at,” said Harvey Lopez who is a pitcher for the Cubs.
Mr. Lopez said the only thing that remains to be fixed is the scoreboard but for now, having lights is more than enough. If you would like to catch a game, admission is free. They play Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 6 p.m.
