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By Charlotte Hopkins

Gary and Amy Williams pose with their daughter Addison. The transformation of the West Elizabeth ballfield was driven by the Williams family and a network of community support to bring baseball back to town.

A look at the newly renovated West Elizabeth ballfield, once quiet and overgrown, now returning to life thanks to grants, donations, and countless volunteer hours. Plans for lights, a concession stand, and restrooms are in future development.

For several years, the baseball field in West Elizabeth sat quiet and unused. It was once the home for league teams and softball games between local businesses. In 2024, local resident, Gary Williams, now a leader with the Pittsburgh Tigers Organization, was scouting for locations for their teams to play their games and remembered the West Elizabeth ballfield.

Gary attended a council meeting to request permission to revamp the ballfield. Once they gave their approval, he and his wife, Amy Williams, started on the next process to require the necessary funding to pay for the overhaul to the field. With Gary’s wife, Amy, spearheading the grant-writing efforts, the project gained serious momentum. Amy reached out to the Pittsburgh Pirates and successfully secured a $25,000 Fields for Kids grant. River Lift Industries contributed an additional $10,000, while Eastern Industrial Services offered labor and equipment valued at over $20,000. Donations of concrete came from Mon River Supply, metal roofing from CGR, and bases from Soft Touch. Volunteers showed up in full force, giving countless hours of their time to restore the field. Construction began in May 2024, and while progress continues, the transformation is already showing promise.

"The next phase of the field project is to get lights," Gary said. "That will allow more weekday games and practices. I’d love to see a Phase 3 that includes a concession stand and restrooms with running water."

Gary remains deeply grateful for the support the project has received. “I can’t thank the West Elizabeth Council and community enough for their confidence and support. It’s a great feeling hearing feedback from people in the community about the field and how good it looks.”

Lisa Morris, Vice President of the West Elizabeth Town Council, echoed that sentiment. “It's been quite a few years since there were games at the ballfield. Every summer, the ballfield was used by various bars that all had softball teams. There used to be a little league team, EFW,  that also used the field.”

She noted that a few teams are already using the field and expressed hope that its use will continue to grow, eventually returning to the full season schedule it once enjoyed with a wide variety of teams. Morris added, “I would like to thank Gary for his vision and for bringing it to life. Thanks to the volunteers and all the companies that donated money and supplies, this could not be done without you. Special thanks to the Pittsburgh Pirates, River Lift, Eastern Industrial Services, Mon River Supply, and CGR.”

What began as one man’s hope to find a field has blossomed into a full community project bringing West Elizabeth back to the heart of the game, one inning at a time.

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