Welcome to the New Lenox Girls Softball and to the upcoming 2010 season. For those unfamiliar to the NLGSA we are a non-profit self funded organization that provides the girls of New Lenox an opportunity to play softball. The league has five divisions that range in age from 5-18 years of old. For the more competitive we offer travelling teams that hold try-outs in August and play under the NLGSA Power name. The main goal of this organization is to provide a supervised recreational softball experience for the girls where they can learn to have fun.

We have some new initiatives for the upcoming season that are very exciting. We are continuing to make improvements to our web site; it will be more user friendly with the ability for parents/players to check upcoming games, standings, rules, download reimbursement forms, upcoming events and a host of other applications. Last year we made the Pee-Wee division more challenging by adding umpires; this helped the girls get a better sense of the game. We will continue to have umpires in this division since the feed back that was received was overwhelming positive. We will once again be having our Picture Day inside this year to be held in association with a Fun Fair, where the girls will be able to play games and win prizes.

Volunteering

The league continues to struggle to find volunteers, it seems that fewer and fewer are being asked to do more and more. Even with the league increasing our activity fee last year to $50, we still found ourselves short of coaches and other important volunteers. The league offers many opportunities to recover your activity fee by simply volunteering some of your time. They are Coach, Assistant Coach, Team Mom/Dad, Loyalty Day Parade, Concession Stand and Fun Fair. This league operates on the generosity of its volunteers any time you donate is much appreciated. The league is very much aware of the economic difficultly many families are facing: with that in mind we have kept our registration fees unchanged for the upcoming season. However, the cost of our candy fund raiser will increase due to the higher cost of candy from our supplier. If you take the candy upfront the cost will be the same $72 just like last year. If you take the buyout the cost will be $42 an increase of $6 over last year’s amount.

Executive Board

Last year the Executive Board had to deal with far too many instances of poor sportsmanship from our coaches and parents alike. Our rules clearly stipulate what conduct is unacceptable and the consequences of that behavior. For this reason the Executive Board will expect that all parents sign a Code of Conduct form, which outlines behavior that is strictly prohibited. The Executive Board will be taking a No Tolerance Policy toward any actions that violate our Code of Conduct. The New Lenox Park District has mandated that we have an AED at the Walona field house. We will be asking that all head coaches and regular concession stand workers be trained in the use of the AED and CPR as well. We will be setting up various times and dates for your convenience, with any expense being paid for entirely by NLGSA.

Thank You

I would like to thank the parents for letting your daughters participate and for taking them to games, practices and volunteering when needed. I would also like to commend the girls for participating in softball this year, have fun and good luck to all of you. Special thanks to the members of the Executive Board along with the committee members, without your guidance this league does not function. Lastly, I would like to thank the New Lenox Park District for its continued assistance and cooperation in the maintenance of our various facilities.

Phillip P. Mierzwa
NLGSA 2009-2010 Executive Board President