Kinmundy Lions Club Ballpark
Kinmundy, Illinois
We are looking for photos of people and/or places from around Kinmundy & Alma. Can you help?
Or maybe you have stories or memories from the "Good Old Days"? What do YOU remember?
The Kinmundy Historical Society would be honored to preserve your memories and stories. We also have the
equipment to scan (or copy) your photos so that they may be enjoyed now as well as for generations yet to come!
We would love to hear from you! For more information, please contact:
Dolores (Ford) Mobley – Dolores@ford-mobley.com
208 Joan Dr.; Divernon, IL 62530; (217) 625-7527
or
Gladys (Corrie) See – gsee49@yahoo.com
408 S. Washington St.; Kinmundy, IL 62854; (618) 547-7731
Click to return to
"The Kinmundy Express" - Oct. 19, 1961
"The Kinmundy Express" - Nov. 16, 1961
"The Kinmundy Express" - March 29, 1962
"Kinmundy Lions Club Purchases Miller Land and Will Construct a Ball Park"
"Friday afternoon the Kinmundy Lions club acquired approximately six acres of land on which to build our lighted Baseball Park. This land, which lies north of the Chow-Now Cafe, and south and east of route 37, was purchased from O.K. Miller on contract for $1,500. A down payment of $500 was made with $100 per year to be paid (interest free) for the next ten years. All of this $1,500 is to come from Lions Club funds. Money collected from donations of organizations and individuals is in a separate fund to pay for the equipment. We wish to thanks the Kinmundy PTA, Woman's Club, Jr. Woman's Club, Home Bureau, for their contributions.
We, the Ballpark Committee, are sure that when this ballpark is completed, it will be a thing of beauty and a source of pride to all iin our city, even to those who are not baseball fans.
The Little League and Pony League will start play under lights by June 1 and one Tuesday night, June 12, we will have a benefit game for the little league starring the Illinois State A.A.U. Softball Champtions, the Decature Alyco Merchants versus the Missouri State Champions.
If we are going to open on schedule - and we are - we will have to work hard and fast. We need money and/or physical help. In the next two months we shall cut and burn brush, dig a drainage ditch and set tile, plow, level, seed and roll the playing field, construct backstop, bleachers, scoreboard, fences, players benches, concession stand, and put up poles, lights and wiring. Many people have pledge their money or time. What we are trying to hint is that NOW is the time. See you Friday, April 6, at the Harlem Magicians ballgame, Fish Fry at High School cafeteria from 4 p.m. until game time sponsored by little league parents - all funds go toward the ball park.
Jim Davis, Chairman
Lions Ballpark Committee
"The Kinmundy Express" - May 17, 1962
"The Kinmundy Express" - May 24, 1962
"Kinmundy Lion’s Club" - By Helen Garrett
The Kinmundy Lion’s Club was formed November 30, 1950 with twenty-five charter members. Most of the members were businessmen. At that time the town had a lot of thriving businesses. People who lived in Kinmundy bought almost everything locally. Dinners were held at the Grade School gym on the Louisville Road, and new men were invited to join the Lion’s. A vote was taken to accept or not accept new members. The goal of the Lion’s Club has always been to try to better the town in any way it could.
Membership boomed during the 60’s and early 70’s. The Lion’s Club took over the Community Center from the City of Kinmundy in May of 1976. The Lion’s Club closed in the building, added a kitchen, bathrooms, and a meeting room with the help of state grants. They made it available to rent for family get-to-gethers, funeral dinners, blood drives, (which they also sponsored), hearing tests, and a collection site for eye glasses to be given to those needing eye care. Also in 1976, Jim Davis, who moved here with his mother, Mrs. Bertha Davis, a few years before, made an offer to Mrs. Oswald (Buck) Miller to buy the property on the curve for the Lion’s Club Ball Field. He was also instrumental in getting Little League teams organized and coached teams for many years. Jim, although being a bachelor, brought so much enthusiasm to the game of baseball here. He and Cecil Harvey coached one of the early teams. When Jim went to Canada on a fishing trip, he brought each team player a Royal Canadian Mountie pocketknife!
A refreshment stand was built at the ball diamond, overseen by the Lion’s Club, but always run by players’ moms. Each coach was responsible for getting the workers for their games, which most of the time were wives!
The Community Center became a big fundraiser for the Lion’s Club with their decision to host a big Labor Day celebration. At first big cookers were borrowed from the Edgewood Legion, brought down and used to fry chickens at the noon hour. The wives of the Lion’s donated all the rest of the dinner, which consisted of potato salad, slaw, baked beans, iced tea and lemonade. Mr. Jesse George left his grocery store open all day so we could go get anything we needed or ran out of, put it on a bill, and pay later. He also cut up all the chickens for us and sold them for 29 cents a pound! Needless to say, the profits were big! The big vats of oil were emptied after the chicken dinners were served and filled with fresh oil for the evening fish fry. Another crew of ladies came and helped wrap fish sandwiches, which were delicious and always sold out. One of our faithful helpers was always Peggy Harvey. In between the two meals was the parade, starting at 2:00 p.m. There were always lots of beautiful riding horses, teams pulling wagons or buggies, and, of course, ponies with their young riders. Judges were in the bandstand where they had a good view of everything. Trophies were awarded, and the list of winners was always in The Kinmundy Express! People came from near and far for the Labor Day celebration, and so much money was made! After all, almost everything was donated!
The Lioness Club was formed with Louise Feather as its first president. It is still very active and a great help to the Lion’s Club. They host blood drives every year.
The Community Center is known for Senior Dances held here in Kinmundy each Thursday and Friday night. People come from all the area towns including Salem, Patoka, Farina, Alma, Edgewood, and Flora.
Clarence Alderson bought the Lion out in front of the Community Center after a fire in his real estate office on Madison Street damaged the first one, a paper-mache one. It is sturdy enough to last forever.
(O-23) Lions Field on the west side of Kinmundy - 1962
Kinmundy Ballpark
By Helen (Robb) Garrett
"James Davis came to Kinmundy to live with his mother, Mrs. Bertha Davis, from Chicago. (Their home was the one now owned by Reed and Cindy Garrett.) From the day Jim came to town he became one of one of most outstanding citizens. He joined the Lions Club and although somewhat crippled, was there to help with everything, especially youth baseball. Rex Garrett was 8 years old – team ages were 8-12. They played behind our grade school on the Louisville Road. Rex played second base. Later that year, Jim and Floyd coached together. Jim went to his home town of Chicago – brought each team member a pocket knife with Canadian Mounties colored picture on them! (Brought Reed one too!) Jim and Cecil Harvey coached the next year or 2. Floyd and I moved to town in 1964, in November, and the next ball season Jim and Floyd coached together. (Floyd became post master in 1964; we moved from the farm, and Floyd coached the next ten years – 1965 until 1975.) It was the coach’s wife to either find someone to work in the stands, or work ourselves. I had a little folding buggy I put Ray in! Ha!"
"Unique ballpark home to South Central players and memories"
Sept. 13, 2017 - "Effingham Daily News"
"Lion’s Field in Kinmundy is in some ways similar to the famous Field of Dreams in Iowa. Though there aren’t any ghosts appearing nearby, the large spacious Kinmundy ballpark sits just off the south bend on Illinois Route 37 and was once just a cornfield. But after more than 50 years, Lion’s Field, in all its retro-glory, is still home to the South Central High School baseball team and generations of memories. “It’s just an amazing place,” said Brent Geiler, an active Lion’s Club member who also grew up playing at Lion’s Field starting in Little League. “There have been a lot of families since the '60s that have jumped in and taken an interest to keep it going.”
Believed to have been first installed in the early '60s, Lion’s Field came about through the efforts of the local Lion’s Club. According to the Kinmundy Historical Society, one of the club’s members, Jim Davis, was pivotal in the field’s creation. "My dad, Floyd, and Jim and a bunch of guys in the Lion’s Club worked on that and got it going,” said Reed Garrett, a 1972 graduate of Kinmundy-Alma who played on the field as did his son, Shawn. The comparison between Davis and Ray Kinsella might not be spot on. After all, Kinsella, played by Kevin Costner in the 1989 sports flick, was an Iowa farmer who decided to build the diamond after hearing voices commanding him to do so, resulting in former Chicago White Sox players appearing out of the surrounding cornfields. Davis was a Chicago native who came to Kinmundy to live with his mother, Bertha, and in the process, helped the Lion’s Club re-establish the field. “He was very instrumental,” said Garrett. “He didn’t have any kids and he was about my dad’s age. He loved ball and he was a big White Sox fan. He did a lot.” Reed, who played on the diamond from Little League up through high school, still recalls picking corn for area farmers as a way to raise money for the field. “It was just a way to get the kids involved,” said Reed. “Everything that’s been done out there has been with volunteer help. We raised money ourselves and several farmers even brought equipment in to help.”
In the days since, it's been a dedicated group of individuals, including current South Central head coach Curt Jones, who have ensured the field’s upkeep and existence as one of the area’s true rural gems. “There’s been a pretty big group of people all along the years,” said Jones, who graduated from Kinmundy-Alma in 1976 and started coaching at South Central in 1997. “Jim Davis was part of the Lion’s Club and the Lion’s Club still owns it.” The field has undergone renovations and improvements over the years. Originally, the field had no outfield fence, though many recall that not being too much of a problem. “You just played the ball as far as it went,” said Garrett.
“Back in '89 when we consolidated, which I would have been a freshman then, they just had a foul pole down in that corner and a foul pole in that corner,” recalled South Central assistant coach Jamie VanScyoc. “I remember to this day, they were playing St. Elmo here and there was a kid running for a foul ball down the line and he ran smack dab into that foul pole, full speed, and knocked his two front teeth out and just laid him out.” A chain-link fence was later installed in the outfield, and then around 10 years ago, the field’s iconic wooden fence replaced it. “Curt was the engineer but he and myself and others built that wooden fence,” said Geiler, “It’s awesome. I think it enhanced the field. It has a retro feel to it. It’s like the old baseball stadiums.” The field was initially home to Kinmundy-Alma High School as an alternative field when the diamond in Alma was not able to be used. Then in 1989, Kinmundy-Alma and Farina-LaGrove combined to become South Central. As Lion’s Field saw steady improvements over the years, it became home for the Cougars. “We tore all the fences down and regraded the whole field,” said Jones, referring to the late '80s. Until recently, Lion’s Field was where boys and girls of all ages and across all levels played, making it difficult at times to schedule games and practices.
But last year, the Webster Family Park and its two diamonds were built near the grade school. One of the fields, Deep Rock Energy Field, is for softball and was completed last fall, though games were held there in the summer. The other field is nearing its completion and will serve as a junior high-sized field, though it too is currently being played on. Together, the two diamonds are helping to alleviate some of the scheduling issues at Lion’s Field. “Until those were built, everything was played here,” said Jones. “Tee-ball all the way up through high school. So it was jam-packed.” But it’s because of its unique utility that Lion’s Field has been home to almost anyone who played ball in the Kinmundy area over the last several decades. “If they played ball, they played here,” said Jones. And for many, Lion’s Field is a lot like home. “It’s pretty special to me,” said Geiler, whose son Trent is a senior this year on the team. “My dad grew up playing baseball there and so did I. “I remember watching my nephews win regional championships and then my son winning a regional here.”
Lion’s Field has also been graced by many high school players who went on to be drafted by Major League teams. South Central alone has produced three such players, including Shawn Garrett, Tanner Bushue and, most recently, Spencer Patton. “It’s pretty amazing how Kinmundy has produced that kind of talent,” said Geiler. “It’s mind-boggling, really.” On Monday, South Central hosted Teutopolis. And while the visiting Wooden Shoes walloped their host, Teutopolis head coach Justin Fleener still admired Lion’s Field after having played on it himself as a North Clay baseball player in the late '80s. “Look at the wooden fence,” said Fleener in reverence. “The dirt, there’s no softer dirt to play on. Any time of the year, the field is always in great shape. Even now, the outfield grass still looks green. It’s a nod to the coaches and the community itself.”
With fall weather now descending on the area, causing the line of trees to the northeast to change colors, Lion’s Field is perhaps in its full glory. Friday night, the Cougars will host conference foe North Clay under the lights. Friday night baseball in the fall just doesn’t get much better, according to VanScyoc, especially when playing at Lion’s Field. “You couldn’t have a better backdrop to hit against,” said VanScyoc. “It’s just the atmosphere of small-town baseball in the fall. There’s nothing better than playing out here.”
Contact Keith Stewart at keith.stewart@effinghamdailynews.com or 217-347-7151, ext. 132."