The Teddy Ebersol's Red Sox Fields project was developed by a new civic and philanthropic partnership of three non-profit groups - The Red Sox Foundation, Hill House, and The Esplanade Association,- in cooperation with Governor Mitt Romney, The Executive Office of Environmental Affairs and the Department of Conservation and Recreation. Inspired by a founding gift from Red Sox Chairman Tom Werner, the fields are named after an avid young Red Sox fan, Teddy Ebersol, who died in a plane crash last winter. The fields stand in honor of Teddy's memory, as well as all Red Sox fans who were taken from us too soon. Our goal was to restore the well-used, well-worn and much-loved youth athletic fields on Boston's famed Esplanade. The project has transformed these damaged, uneven and often flooded ball fields to include two baseball/softball diamonds, a youth baseball diamond, a t-ball diamond, up to five youth soccer fields and a regulation-sized soccer field. Through the support of hundreds of donors who provided nearly $2 million in private donations, we not only totally rebuilt the fields, but added-much needed new drainage and irrigation systems as well as dugouts for softball and baseball, and lighting, so adult and youth groups no longer have to compete for limited daylight hours of play.

Youth soccer began on September 5, 2006– and baseball and softball games are being scheduled for next spring, once the new sod infield takes hold. While some fencing will remain around the baseball fields until the new grass is firmly rooted, the pathway along the Charles River allowing pedestrians and cyclists to access the full length of the Esplanade has already reopened.

As in all state parks, permitting for use of the field is controlled by the state Dept of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), so we wanted to be sure anyone seeking playing space for youth soccer, softball and baseball, knows about this marvelous new recreation area. For more information on obtaining a permit, please contact the DCR via its website, www.mass.gov/dcr/recreate/fields.htm or by calling 617-626-1250.

We are also deeply honored by Dick and Susan Ebersol’s generous challenge grant, in which the family has pledged to match up to $500,000 in new donations to an endowment fund created to help underwrite the cost of future maintenance of the fields. This extraordinary commitment has already generated a $100,000 donation from the Schaffer Foundation, and working with our nonprofit partners at Hill House and the Esplanade Association, the Red Sox Foundation has begun a campaign to raise the remaining $400,000, which will assure the fields are playable for generations to come.

We are very grateful to the many donors, large and small, who made this “field of dreams” a reality. We also welcome additional tax deductible donations towards the field maintenance endowment. For friends of the Red Sox Foundation who might be interested in offering additional support, please note that

• Donations of $10,000 will be recognized with a plaque on a park bench in the field area listing the donors name or name of someone you wish to honor or memorialize.
• Donors who contribute$25,000 or more will have their names or those of a designee engraved in the new granite backstops on the baseball diamonds.
• Contributions of $100,000 or more will be recognized with the donors names permanently displayed on the two Green Monster Scoreboards used at the fields.
• Checks should be made to the Red Sox Foundation/Teddy Ebersol’s Red Sox Fields and they will be earmarked for the field endowment fund. Pledge Form

We hope you will have an opportunity to stop by this gorgeous new recreation area soon. We are confident you will agree that Teddy Ebersol’s Red Sox Fields are an amazing addition to the state’s public park system -- and an exceptional gift to children and families throughout the Commonwealth. Thank you again for your generous support of the Red Sox Foundation’s charitable outreach, and we look forward to sharing this great gift with everyone in our community.