CALEDONIA — Young players, some as young as 3 years old, were scattered throughout the fields of Ola J. Pickett Park. There were kids of all skill levels, boys and girls, out there on opening day of the new season, a scene repeated in towns big and small every spring.

But this one was different, and several people in attendance on this opening day remembered well when none of it existed.

Caledonia Parks and Recreation celebrated its 20th anniversary on Saturday morning, and several of those present at the creation were on hand to mark the occasion and remember how it all began.

“It was almost a have-to, because it was a small town,” said Kevin Brown, listed as “school liaison” on the original Caledonia Sports Association board. “The school was kind of the center of everything, so we needed something for our kids to participate in, and a lot of us were having to go to Columbus.

“Among the seven, we all had little kids that were starting to play ball, so some of us got together and decided to see if we could do our own out here, not to match what Columbus had but just to have someplace for our kids to be.”

“I’d been in the parks system in Columbus ever since I was 23.” recalled Tony Hopper, the first CSA president. “I was coaching at Probst Park, and we decided to try it out here.”

“We played at Probst Park for years and years, and we wanted our community as a whole – the kids, families, neighbors, grandparents – who live in Caledonia to be able to come and watch their grandkids play, or their kids,” added Wayne Fairchild, who went to Dizzy Dean Baseball to find out what was required to join.

There were fields, kind of. 

“We had about three field here at the time, and we added one our second or third year in, I guess,” said Andy Hicks, one of the original CSA vice presidents. “But there was a lot of work that needed to be done to them.”

So much work that it might have been generous to say there were three parks, Hopper noted, saying in reality there were one and a half. But typically, a lot of people stepped up to help make things happen.

“We had volunteers that would come out here and fix fields on weekends,” Fairchild said. “We had a lady who came and striped our fields every game. All volunteers. It’s an amazing thing.”

As much as things came together, there were some hurdles to overcome.

“We started doing signups, and we wound up with nearly 300 kids,” said Steve Honnoll, the CSA’s other vice president. “The biggest hurdle was getting all of that put together, because none of us had ever experienced anything like that before.

“But it all came together.”

It came together largely because people did whatever needed to be done. Even now, each of the original CSA board members deflects credit at every turn.

“We were all umpires, concession stand workers, park directors, grounds crews, grocery shoppers, everything,” Hopper said. “But it’s a wonderful thing to come back after 20 years, which is hard to believe, and see a lot of the kids that started playing having their kids play.”

Hopper tried to give credit to then-alderman Mike Savage. “Without his support, it never would have happened,” Hopper said. “He really helped us a lot.”

Not so fast, Savage says.

“My job pretty much was to make it so they could do theirs as best they could,” Savage said. “We provided the fields and whatever they needed we tried to give it to them, because they set a great program up, and it’s lasted 20 years. I can’t thank them enough.”

Neither can Delaina McCraw, the current director of parks and recreation in Caledonia.

“I think that they’re awesome, and the good thing is there are still several of them we can pick up the phone and call and they can guide and direct,” she said of the original CSA board members. “It’s still pretty much a community and family effort.”

While Parks and Rec has grown over the past 20 years, there actually were more baseball players that first year than there were on Saturday. But it’s close — McCraw said 358 signed up this year for basebal — but there also were roughly 260 soccer players and other community activities that fall under the Parks and Recreation umbrella.  

“We enjoy this park year round,” said Caledonia Mayor Betty Darnell, sitting at a pavilion near one of the fields. “It’s more than ball. People think it’s just ball. We’re putting in a new splash pad; it should be ready for Memorial Day. We have disc golf.

“The (walking) track is used every day. It’s a great asset with the Y being there and the track out here. We have a volleyball court that the high school kids play on just about every day. 

“This pavilion is used, and we’re redoing the one out by the splash pads. We’ve got the roof in, we’ve got new painting, and we’re putting in a new changing room so moms can change their kids when they’re wet instead of just put them in the car and go.”

Darnell has lived in Caledonia since 1984 and said the park, along with the schools, is among the key incentives luring people to move into the town. Although growth has leveled off somewhat, the current estimated population is more than double what it was in 1980.

“The main thing was this was part of the community,” Hopper said. “It’s a small town, a close town, and you get a lot of support from the town.”

Sometimes that support is tangible and obvious, and sometimes it’s more intangible. 

On the tangible side, there is Doc Perkins, McCraw’s “favorite co-worker.”

“(He is) our maintenance person, and he is the ‘Doc of all trades,’ as I like to call him,” McCraw said of Perkins, who, she said, was a volunteer before he became an employee. “He helps do everything. He knows the lay of the land. He knows everything about field maintenance that I would want to know. He teaches me about fertilizer and drainage.”

The parks department recognized Perkins’ value at the soccer fields behind the baseball and softball fields, “the back 40,” as McCraw called it.

“This past year they dedicated it to Mr. Doc, so I like to call it ‘The Doc,’” she said.

Then there is the intangible support. While Perkins motored around the park looking for things that needed doing, The Cavalier King was busy, well, being The Cavalier King.

Mike Taylor has become something of a Caledonia sports super-fan. His Cavalier King character was hard to miss, patrolling the grounds in a huge white hat and carrying a bat.

“When I was young I watched a lot of wrestling, and the character’s kind of modeled on a wrestler,” he said. “I was playing around with it, just being funny, just goofing up, and came up with a character.”

Taylor said The Cavalier King debuted in late 2020 when Caledonia High School’s football team was headed toward the playoffs.

“I was trying to get the fans involved, and I have a son who’s on the team,” Taylor said. “I put out a couple of videos, and then last season I kind of took it full-bore. 

“It was just something to try and get people fired up, get the kids fired up. They like it, so I kind of kept it going.”

His Majesty’s presence added to the festive feel of the anniversary celebration/opening day, which featured a dunk tank, face painting, almost constant game action and an all-day concession stand. It was opening day, and everyone was in a festive mood.

“This is Caledonia,” Fairchild said. “This is it. Each neighbor, grandmother, grandfather that lives here doesn’t have to drive 15 minutes — and some of them are not able to — but they’re here, sitting in their chairs, they’re prepared for all day just to watch these kids play baseball.”