Reimer said Boissevain is known as a ball town and is one of the few that can field teams in all of the age groups. One of the keys is the community involvement and spirit. There are plenty of volunteers available who help out, whether they are coaching or taking on other roles. This is why they are able to host provincial tournaments in different age categories like the Peewee Provincials this summer.
“Other towns want to apply for things like this, because they know how much they do for the community, but they can’t get the volunteers to help. Boissevain has a good base of volunteers and we can get people to work at provincials.”
Over the years, the Dalrymple family has been a key contributor to ball in Boissevain, and 2020 is no different. This year, Boissevain native and former Centennial Lloyd Dalrymple, who is now in Kingston, Ontario made a big offer. He, with his kids Wyatt and Quinn, decided to pay all of the registration fees for Boissevain players for the 2020 season. Reimer said this immediately was big news.
“It is huge already,” he said. “Everyone around the region has heard about this. It really enables us to grow our numbers.”
Dalrymple said the decision to cover the baseball/softball fees for Boissevain players was based on a desire to help out his hometown and to show his appreciation to those who helped him and his fellow players when he was a youth.
“I have lived in three different provinces and three different states but Boissevain will always be my home,” Dalrymple stated. “The idea came up in one part because I wanted to say ‘thank you’ to all of the families (the Brake’s, Clyne’s, McCallum’s, Cameron’s, Tutkaluke’s, Billaney’s, Mains’, Robertson’s to name just a few) around Boissevain for making my sports time run so smoothly.”
He added there are a number of different people, from coaches to grounds crew, who make such a difference. Another spur to the donation was celebrating Maple Ridge, BC native Larry Walker making the Baseball Hall of Fame this year, the second Canadian player to do so.
Dalrymple said Minor Ball had no idea he was making such a gift, so it must have been a big surprise to them. One of the requests he had in making the donation was that families volunteer the amount back into Minor Ball this year. He said his family is well known for their commitment to the community – whether it was his parents driving him and his brother around or aunts and uncles showing support and cheering on members of the family who were successful and represented the community.
“I never had a chance to return the debt owed to Boissevain for all the volunteering received so I wanted to ‘pay it forward’ and ask that parents help with coaching, scorekeeping, driving, umpiring, or whatever it takes for their child or children in baseball/softball this year.”
Coming back to town over the last few years, Dalrymple said it was nice to see the success of the Centennials, a team he contributed so much to, filter down to the younger players. He has a cousin in Winnipeg, and he was able to secure bragging rights when the Boissevain team beat them in provincials last year. Ball is important to him, as it gave him opportunities to go to school with a scholarship to the US, eventually moving into teaching. In a sense, minor baseball in Boissevain gave him a path to where he is today.
Reimer said the donation would be helpful for a lot of families who might not be able to afford the more than $100 to put their kids in minor ball. Or it could make money available for new equipment or gas for travel.
“It can do nothing but good,” Reimer stated.
The donor agrees.
“I would like to see a parent who hasn’t been involved before get involved,” Dalrymple explained. “I would like to see parents approach their coaches to see if they need help before the coaches have to ask. Mainly Quinn, Wyatt and I would like to see kids have fun. If that fee money needs to be used for groceries, a new baseball glove, piano lessons, or gas for an extra tournament then we are completely okay with that.”
The Dalrymples have been involved in other projects around the Lions ball diamonds, including getting a maintenance shed built last year. There is some money left over from the family donation, which will be used in a major project this spring. Minor Ball will be extending their existing canteen facility eastwards to build a shelter for those attending games. Reimer said it would allow people to get out of the sun and rain, making their experience more enjoyable. They want to start work on it as soon as possible this spring, with it being completed by the Peewee Provincials in mid-July. About 60% of the costs will be borne by a Manitoba 150 grant they received from 150 and the Boissevain & Morton Foundation of $12,775.
Reimer said the Minor Ball AGM is on March 25, and the kids are looking to get going. League play starts in early May. They will have to see what the numbers look like, but in 2019 they had four rookie “rally cap” co-ed teams, four girls’ softball teams and five boys’ baseball teams. He added Boissevain has become the town to beat in ball and that reputation is very enjoyable.
There is a lot of work to youth baseball in the community, but Reimer said the strong volunteer base makes it much easier. We are the envy of many towns in the area, and the “unprecedented” donation from the Dalrymple’s only makes it better. The donor himself said they just wanted to be of assistance, and hope to have some games playing when they visit this summer.
“We are happy to help and we couldn’t think of a better investment but back into prairie kids.”
by PAUL RAYNER, Recorder staff