Minneota's Summer Rec program is flourishing

In the last two years, the participation in the Minneota Summer Rec program has increased by 26 percent, a huge amount for a small town.
"We have added fifth and sixth grade softball and baseball, as well as seventh and eighth grade softball in the last two years," said Cassie Van Watermeulen, who coordinates the Summer Rec program with her husband Dave.
But as the number of kids has increased by 50 over those two years, so too has the need for new equipment.
The City of Minneota helps with the funding of the program, as well as the registration fees, donations and profits from concessions all helping to offset the cost of the additional participants and teams. But the program still needs new equipment such as bats, balls, bags, helmets and catching gear.
"We're getting new equipment each year. It's a slow process, but we're getting there," said Cassie. "When we took over two years ago, the program was doing well but we knew it needed some revamping."
Dave Van Watermeulen was a coach of his oldest daughter's team three years ago and when there became an opening for a director, he and his wife volunteered. They have three children, and all are involved in the Summer Rec program.
"It's very busy to say the least," said Cassie.With more kids signing up to play, there weren't enough fields in town. So the Van Watermeulens funded and did a lot of the work to refurbish an unused ballfield at St. Edward's two years ago.
"Concessions were brought in to help offset some of those costs," Cassie said. "The concessions (run by Julie Pohlen) from this year are still paying for that field, along with the equipment needed for the three new teams we added this year. Families volunteer and donate baked goods."
The scheduling for practices and games are available online so parents can plan accordingly, said Cassie.
Some of the Minneota Summer Rec teams play in leagues, such as the 14U softball team in the 32-team Southern Star Fastpitch League, the 10U and 12U softball teams in the seven-team Prairie Leagues, and the 3rd-4th grade (12 teams), 5th-6th grade (14 teams), and 7th-8th grade (8 teams) baseball teams all in the Little Sioux Little League.