1)      Introduction

i)        This report is furnished in accordance with Article VI, Section 2 of the Tolland Little League Charter.

ii)       First, I wholeheartedly thank all of the volunteers on the board of Tolland Little League (TLL) and all of the coaches and other related volunteers for making softball and baseball possible for children in Tolland.  It is a significant amount of work, and I appreciate it.  I am sure the players and parents do as well.

iii)     This year the TLL Board said goodbye to PJ Clark, Jeremy Rainha, Bruce Blanchard, and Dana Clark.  My special thanks goes out to these outgoing board members for their hard work, leadership and support.  PJ Clark gets an addition thank you for getting me involved with TLL.

iv)     We have several open board and officer positions going into the 2021 season.  We will begin our recruiting effort now.

v)       Overall TLL had a successful year in carrying out our mission, even with the challenges of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.  We had a successful regular season and competed well in all-star play.

2)      Financial Results

i)        Our total income was $23,903 from registrations for the regular season. This excluded amounts for the fall season, which occurred after our September 30, 2020. This also excludes clinic amounts, as clinics were not provided this season due to COVID-19. The registration amount is much lower than in the past given levels below AAA baseball and minors softball that did not play. AAA baseball played but was not charged registration fees.

ii)       Total expenses were $32,679 from chartering, insurance, umpires, grounds expenses, and equipment costs.

iii)     When we emerge from COVID-19 impacts, I expect the league to operate at about a break-even basis, excluding fundraisers for field projects.

3)      Teams and Enrollment

i)        Enrollment in baseball was strong again this year at 269, and enrollment in softball was better than last year at 110. We will continue to work on softball enrollment in 2021.  We also had 103 registrations to manage, coach, join the board, or otherwise volunteer. 

ii)       Outside of the regular season, we had 9/10 and 11/12 baseball teams compete in District 8 baseball all-star tournaments.

iii)     We had teams at the minors, majors, and juniors levels play in our fall season too.

4)      Conditions of Fields and Facilities

i)        Conditions at the fields in Tolland were good this year in what was some challenging weather with heat and lengthy dry periods.  During the fall season, we took Cross Farms Field C offline due to significant lips in the infield and a raised home plate. The resources from the Town installed new mounds at all of the Cross fields, and they continue to do a terrific job preparing our fields for play.

ii)       We were again able to use the gyms at THS for open batting cage and our evaluations prior to COVID.  Use of THS adds significantly to our development capabilities in the offseason.  We look forward to a post-COVID period when we can resume open batting cage and clinics.

5)      Safety

i)        Safety this year centered around COVID compliance. We did the following to keep the players and volunteers safe:

(1)    Obtained COVID-killing disinfectant for each field location to clean dugouts and equipment

(2)    Obtained hand sanitizer gallons for each field location

(3)    Stocked disposable masks at each field location

(4)    Developed processes for social distancing and other protections and distributed a write up to all managers and coaches.

(5)    Hung signs for spectators to social distance

ii)       Safety is always top of mind for TLL.  We had a few typical injuries that go along with softball and baseball.  Thankfully, none were serious.

iii)     We purchased a significant quantity of ice packs and will continue to do that in the future.

iv)     We file our A Safety Awareness Program (ASAP) with Little League International every year.  This provides savings on our insurance.

6)      Feedback

i)        We did not conduct a survey this year.

7)      We will send a survey to either parents or coaches based on the 2021 season and build the results of that survey into the goals and plans of TLL for 2022.

8)      2021 Priorities – the following will be part of what we focus on as a TLL board

i)        Further improve softball registration numbers

ii)       Improve coach training and development

iii)     Invest in new equipment, especially at the lower levels

iv)     Execute on field projects and enhancements