Wood Ducks help refurbish Fairfield Park Tuesday
The Down East Wood Ducks volunteered their time on an off day to help Kinston-Lenoir County Parks and Recreation Department staff members during the ‘MiLB:Refresh’ initiative Tuesday at Fairfield Park. Photo by Junious Smith III / Neuse News
By Junious Smith III
The Down East Wood Ducks have been making contributions on and off the field this season.
The team combated scorching temperatures to team up with Kinston-Lenoir County Parks and Recreation staff members for the “MiLB:Refresh” initiative Tuesday at Fairfield Park, created by Minor League Baseball Charities to enhance local baseball and softball communities.
Corey Povar, director of the Kinston-Lenoir County Parks and Recreation Department, said the Wood Ducks came to his office and were able to put the event together.
“We had the facility and needed a little help, so we came up with a plan to see what could be done to provide the most benefit to the area,” Povar said. “It’s nice to see the players and staff out here, and their efforts to help improve this park is tremendous.”
Despite the team’s first day off since May 11, at least 15 Wood Ducks players and staff members came out to refurbish the playing fields, handling tasks such as painting, weed whacking and roof repair. DEWD manager Corey Ragsdale said the team was excited to come out and show support.
“We have a great group of guys here, and it’s pretty cool what they’ve done,” Ragsdale said. “We’ve played 21 games in the past 21 days and to see them out here just speaks upon the character. We have a signup sheet when it comes to volunteering and I don’t have to talk to them about doing something — they’re very enthusiastic.”
Among the volunteers was DEWD shortstop Ryan Dorow, who was named Carolina League Player of the Week Tuesday after hitting four home runs and 10 RBIs from May 20-26. Currently, the Wood Ducks have the best record in the league at 35-17 — 2.5 games ahead of the Wilmington Blue Rocks of the Northern Division and a 5.5-game advantage over the Carolina Mudcats of the Southern Division.
“We’re just trying to give back to the community,” Dorow said. “They’ve supported us by coming out to the games, so we wanted to do our part by trying to help improve the facilities.”
Woodies catcher Clayton Middleton shared similar sentiments.
“We’re always about giving back to the community,” Middleton said. “They’ve shown up to the games and it’s the least we can do, coming out to help here for a couple hours.”
DEWD pitcher Reid Anderson said it was a wonderful opportunity.
“It’s a good chance to give back and we wanted to help spruce up where we could,” Anderson said.
The Wood Ducks return to action on Wednesday with a four-game series against the Salem Red Sox at Historic Grainger Stadium.
