This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Life Editor

The Metro North Miracle League is getting ready to welcome a high-level visitor from Washington, D.C. to its playing field at the Blaine Baseball Complex.

Thomas Perez, assistant attorney general with the U.S. Department of Justice’s civil rights division, will be a special guest of honor at a July 7 league game.

Jim Kappelhoff, Blaine Park and Recreation director, confirmed the Perez visit Tuesday afternoon.

Perez, the nation’s top civil rights law enforcement official, oversees the U.S. Department of Justice’s Disability Rights Section.

The section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other laws that protect the rights of individuals with mental and/or physical challenges.

Perez will be accompanied during next week’s Blaine Miracle Field visit by B. Todd Jones, the U.S. Attorney for Minnesota.

The game is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, July 7, at the Miracle League Field located in the Blaine Baseball Complex, 1150 Paul Parkway.

According to Kappelhoff, Perez will provide opening remarks and throw out the ceremonial first pitch, as well as visit with league players, coaches and parents and volunteers.

The Miracle League of Minnesota Metro North provides children from age four to 21 with mental or physical challenges the on-field opportunity to play baseball as a team member in an organized league.

The custom-designed field in Blaine accommodates wheelchairs and other walking assistance devices, while helping prevent injuries.

The entire Miracle League field is constructed out of a new synthetic turf with coloring for grass, clay, bases and chalk lines.

In November 2004, the Miracle League approached the city with an idea of constructing the first baseball field in Minnesota specifically designed for children with physical or mental disabilities.

In keeping with the baseball environment, the Blaine Baseball Complex was considered the primary location for this facility.

The complex had the required area needed for the synthetic field surface and handicapped accessible dugouts.

Recent expansion of the parking lot has provided ample handicapped parking and the site fits well with the scheme of the existing fields.

The project was enthusiastically recommended by the Blaine Park Board and approved by the Blaine City Council in 2005.

There was no additional cost to the city, but 15,000 square feet of park land was taken to finish the project.

Ground-breaking ceremonies took place in August 2005 with a Minnesota Twins Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew and team Manager Ron Gardenhire on hand with shovels to make ceremonial dirt tosses.

Donated labor and funding from the Twins Community Fund and the Pohlad Family Foundation ensured the new field was completed in eight weeks.

May 6, 2006, opening ceremonies took place with the chords of “Take Me Out To the Ball Game” piped into the air by a full-size pipe organ that had been brought onto the field.

Promotion of the Miracle League Field and the city was enhanced May 15, 2008, when the Minnesota Twins televised a live broadcast of its pre-game and post-game shows.

Youth baseball games were played on all fields in the park on that date, including the Miracle League Field, creating an additional baseball theme backdrop.

Volunteers and Metro League of Minnesota Metro North board members also are scheduled to meet with Perez during his late Wednesday afternoon visit.

For details about Perez visit, contact Jill Teetzel, Miracle League north metro coordinator, at 612-270-0415 or visit www.miracleleaguemnmetronorth.com.


Tim Hennagir is at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it