Classic rock, emitting from a small speaker safely stowed behind the backstop, pumped up players and fans alike on this bright-but-brisk Saturday morning. But this was no ordinary JV baseball pre-game. The crowd was gathered not just to cheer on their team, but to celebrate the groundbreaking of what will become Jeff DeCamp Field at Clarke Park.
The six-acre park was donated to the city of LaPorte in the late 1930s by the Clarke family and has seen its heyday as a hub of community activity – or has it? Thanks to enormous effort from the DeCamp’s Band of Brothers Foundation, Clarke Park has found new life.
“It’s going to start with the field,” said Mark Schreiber, Park Superintendent and a DeCamp’s Band of Brothers Foundation board member, “an all new infield, regrading on the outfield; we’re going to do all new fencing including the backstop, new dugouts, new spectator areas, new bullpens; and then we’re going to relocate the community playground to a safer spot on the other side [of the field].”
But the renovations won’t stop there – this is a larger project, for the larger community.
“We’re going to have a brand new playground, some open green space. Ultimately, we’d like to do a picnic area, maybe some basketball courts,” Schreiber continued. “Everybody who lives in this neighborhood will be able to take a lot of pride in what’s done here.”
“We need to be able to get out and play,” said Darrin Brooks, a DeCamp’s Band of Brothers Foundation board member. “It’s where families come. It’s where friends come. It’s where lifelong friendships are made.”
After the first scoop was shoveled, Brooks spoke to the ballplayers gathered behind him on “embracing the legacy,” explaining that “these are going to be your friends for life.”
In fact, the project itself was inspired by such a lifelong friendship.
“The genesis of [DeCamp’s Band of Brothers] was that our friend, Jeff DeCamp, was diagnosed with cancer,” Schreiber said, “and a group of us started raising money to help him with his treatments. When he passed away, we decided ‘Let’s just keep raising that money.’”
The Clarke Park renovation is the foundation’s first – and very ambitious – project. During the groundbreaking, Mike Riehle, a DeCamp’s Band of Brothers board member, said “We bit off what we thought was more than we could chew – until today.”
That’s because 1st Source Community Bank was there to present the foundation with a $20,000 check.
“The specific event today is to honor 1st Source Bank Foundation,” said Riehle. “That’s the main reason we’re here: to kick off the groundbreaking with their presentation of their check today.”
“We are a community bank, and we’re a reflection of the communities that we’re in,” said Matt Vessely, Regional President for 1st Source Bank, “so we really do take a lot of time and energy and financial resources, and we do our best to put that back to work in the community.”
During his presentation of the check, Vessely summed up the project by saying, “When I think about all the winners in this scenario, we’ve got a neighborhood park that’s going to get a breath of new life; we’ve got youth sports and our schools that are going to have a great facility to play in; we’ve got a city that’s going to see an improved quality of life – all these things come together and make La Porte a better place.”
“We want to secure this victory,” Schreiber said, “It’s a great comeback for this park, for this ball diamond, for this neighborhood. And we really want to follow through on it.”
1st Source Bank’s generous contribution puts the win within reach, but more funds are needed to begin work this summer.
With a goal of only $25,000 left to raise, you can help bring this project home. Donate at patronicity.com/clarkepark
