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Field of Dreams has been a hit since Day 1.
The friendly baseball tournament for high school special education students was the brainchild of Gail Tucker, a special education teacher at Wake Forest High School.
"My students loved sports, but there were very few opportunities for them to be involved in high school athletics," she says.
"So, eight years ago, I decided to invite the Wakefield High School special needs class to a friendly game of baseball. We also invited the varsity baseball players from each school to act as buddies for the students. Just to have a few fans in the stands, I sent e-mails to all of the teachers and invited them to come and watch. To our surprise, we had about 200 students, staff, and parents, come out to cheer us on. After the game, one of the parents commented, 'I feel like for the first time our child is a part of the school.' That’s how the Field Of Dreams began, and why we must continue."
Last week marked the 8th annual Field of Dreams, where 10 high schools fielded teams. In all, more than 800 students, teachers, parents and community volunteers participated.
Varsity baseball and softball athletes helped coach, and some schools sent their cheerleading squads.
"We play baseball at our school almost every week," says Caroline Olson, a special education teacher at Broughton High School.
"The students love being here. Everyone cheering us on is really exciting."
"My kids start planning this months in advance. It's just a great day. It's an opportunity for everyone to play ball."
Cindy Boykin was waiting for her son, Shane, a 9th grader at Broughton, to come up to bat.
Field of Dreams has been a hit since Day 1.
The friendly baseball tournament for high school special education students was the brainchild of Gail Tucker, a special education teacher at Wake Forest High School.
"My students loved sports, but there were very few opportunities for them to be involved in high school athletics," she says.
"So, eight years ago, I decided to invite the Wakefield High School special needs class to a friendly game of baseball. We also invited the varsity baseball players from each school to act as buddies for the students. Just to have a few fans in the stands, I sent e-mails to all of the teachers and invited them to come and watch. To our surprise, we had about 200 students, staff, and parents, come out to cheer us on. After the game, one of the parents commented, 'I feel like for the first time our child is a part of the school.' That’s how the Field Of Dreams began, and why we must continue."
Last week marked the 8th annual Field of Dreams, where 10 high schools fielded teams. In all, more than 800 students, teachers, parents and community volunteers participated.
Varsity baseball and softball athletes helped coach, and some schools sent their cheerleading squads.
"We play baseball at our school almost every week," says Caroline Olson, a special education teacher at Broughton High School.
"The students love being here. Everyone cheering us on is really exciting."
"This is a huge day for us," says Sgt. Maj. Ginger Cribb of the Wake Forest High School JROTC, which helps plan and manage Field of Dreams.
"My kids start planning this months in advance. It's just a great day. It's an opportunity for everyone to play ball."
Cindy Boykin was waiting for her son, Shane, a 9th grader at Broughton, to come up to bat.
"This is awesome," she says. "They're having a wonderful time. I can't just say enough about this program. He's been playing baseball for years and was so excited to come out. It's fantastic."
