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Monday, October 30, 2000
Field being dedicated to 2 PALs | ||
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In 1956, approximately 60 children played on four youth football teams in Fairfield's Police Athletic League. They played in Jim Flewelling's backyard under makehsift lights. Bill Donahue and Dick McGee volunteered as coaches and organizers. In 2000, hundreds of children play football, soccer, baseball and softball in PAL programs on new fields just off Western Avenue in Fairfield. Bill Donahue and Dick McGee are still involved. Donahue and McGee have led and initiated the growth of PAL in Fairfield. Sunday was supposed to be the day the Western Avenue fields were named after the men, forever cementing the link between Donahue, McGee and PAL. "We wanted to honor the people who had worked the longest and hardest," said Bruce Roderick, president of PAL football. Sunday's snowstorm may have postponed the official ceremony until noon on Saturday, Nov. 4, but that's fine to Donahue and McGee. They last thing they've considered in their decades of service is leaving a legacy. Having their names attached to the ballfields is an honor, to be sure, but the greater reward has been in watching generations grow up in the PAL programs. "You work all these years, you don't expect this," said McGee. "I can't thank enough people for their help." PAL was started by Fairfield's then chief of police Fred Gould, and Donahue and McGee are firm believers in sports ability to keep children motivated and off the streets. "I've just enjoyed doing this," said Donahue. "I enjoy working with the kids." "A lot of kids start the program in the third grade," said McGee. "The next thing you know, they're in college. It's done a lot for many of them." Roderick is one of the kids who grew up playing football in PAL. "I've known Bill my entire life he's like a second father to me," said Roderick. "I've known Dick McGee since I was 5 years old. They've helped shape a lot of youth. They've had a tremendous amount of positive influence." It's the opinion of some volunteers that without Donahue and McGee, PAL wouldn't exist. In the mid-90s, Doug Cutchin offered the land the fields now occupy. When asked by McGee to help, Cutchin didn't hesitate. "They (Donahue and McGee) have between them pulled the PAL program together and run it on a shoestring," said Cutchin. "That's true long-term commitment." "They've always been behind the scenes, doing the work people don't know about," said Roderick. "Whatever the kids needed." The town of Fairfield helped Cutchin build a road to the fields, and the first games were played in 1997. A skating rink was added last year. McGee and Donahue don't feel they've done anything out of the ordinary. The kids needed a nice place to play, that's all. If there's a reward, it's in not having to practice on the coaches' lawn. "It's rewarding to see the number of kids up there," said McGee. "On a Saturday and Sunday in Fall, we have 500, 600 kids up there, game after game. Hopefully, it will continue to grow." "This is really a great area out there," said Donahue. "I ask myself 'How did we ever get by?'" They got by thanks to the hard work of many volunteers, said Roderick, many of which were inspired by the tireless efforts of Donahue and McGee. The close friends have both been retired for a few years Donahue from Cartier's and McGee as a football coach and athletic director at Colby College but neither plans to stop being involved in PAL anytime soon. They saw their own children grow up playing in PAL programs, and now have grandchildren in the leagues. "I meet kids I coached, a lot of these kids have got children," said Donahue. "When kids would say to me 'You had my grandfather', I thought it would be time to get out," said McGee. "I'm just stubborn, I guess." To reach Travis Lazarczyk Phone: 861-9242 E-mail: tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com | ||