Rondout Valley Little League--Rosendale and Marbletown, Ulster County, NY

The first Sandlot Day in Rondout Valley, New York was a big success. Despite high temperatures and a few All-Star teams still alive, 21 boys and girls from the towns of Rosendale and Marbletown came out on Sunday, July 10. The concept behind Sandlot Day is for kids to take over the fields for a day, running the games and choosing sides as they see fit, without grownups telling them what to do in the hope of fostering the fun aspect of the game and letting them experience the game the way their parents learned it. The idea was started by the SUNY Youth Sports Institute in Cortland.

The kids made up their own rules and games, even taking turns dressing up as the umpire and making rulings accordingly. Some of the older girls decided to play pickle with the younger kids. Only one band-aid had to be administered--and that was for a pre-existing boo boo. For supervising parents Bill Earl and Matthew Silverman, who served as mostly silent spectators, one of the highlights was a wooden bat a kid brought, making a distinct sound not heard on the fields during regularly scheduled games.

Rondout looks forward to hosting Sandlot Day again in 2012. Thanks to Lori Sadow for the photos and promotion and to all the parents who handled dropoff and the kids for running with the idea.