Miracle League Field In Vernon Hosts First Official Game

VERNON, CT — The first official game was played Saturday at the new regional special needs athletic field on the campus of Northeast School in Vernon.

In the words of Mayor Dan Champagne, who threw a strike in the ceremonial first pitch for a baseball game between Vernon and South Windsor, it was an "amazing day."

"It's really cool that it's right here in Vernon," he added.

The impetus behind the project has been Laurel and Steve Leibowitz and the Miracle League of Northern Connecticut.

Vernon Miracle League Field has a synthetic short turf surface that is fully accessible to people who use wheelchairs or have other mobility issues. The field also has wheelchair-accessible dugouts and is completely flat and barrier free so that children with visual disabilities can participate. During play, each athlete traditionally has a buddy.

At one point, with wheelchair athletes occupying first, second and third bases, Steve Liebowitz quipped, "Now thats wheels on the bases."

The game was the culmination of a process that began in June 2022, when Vernon was named as the host of the third regional Miracle Field in Connecticut.

The first game was the culmination of a collaborative effort between the town of Vernon, the Vernon public school system, the Miracle League of Northern Connecticut, the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation and a host of local businesses, volunteers and donors. The field will now host special needs events through the region.

The project cost was about $1 million with the Ripken Foundation as a major backer. The town provided $175,000 for expansion of the parking lot for the field, and provided in-kind services by town employees. Vernon's monetary share came from federal American Recovery Act. U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney's office presented the Miracle League with a U.S. flag for the facility.

There are about 300 Miracle Fields across the U.S. and the two others in Connecticut are in West Hartford and East Lyme.

In addition to baseball, the field is suitable for lacrosse and soccer.