Former Detroit Tiger Sean Casey, his wife Mandi and their children break ground at Neil Reid Park in Clinton Township last summer on a new, adaptive little league field for disabled youths, along with Challenger Baseball organizer and volunteer Marilyn Wittstock and Clinton Township Supervisor Bob Cannon. Construction on the field is just days away.

A vacant, snow-covered patch of land in Clinton Township's Neil Reid Park will be transformed into a beautiful, new little league baseball field this May - and will serve as a reminder of how hard work and determination can make dreams come true.

The new field is not planned to be any ordinary baseball diamond, but rather an adaptive field for disabled boys and girls of Challenger Baseball, a special needs division of the Clinton Valley Little League.

This June will mark the Challenger Baseball special needs division's 14th season and the first time the 5- to 18-year-old boys and girls will play ball in a safe and structured environment that caters to their various mental and physical disabilities.

The little league is open to all Metro area Children, including those from the Auburn Hills area, with a wide range of disabilities, up until the completion of school. Approximately 60 children register each season and get divided up into four teams that play 12 games.

"It really has been my dream, ever since I started getting involved with little league, that we have our own baseball field," Challenger Baseball organizer and volunteer Marilyn Wittstock said. "The field we used in previous seasons was not meant for kids with wheelchairs and walkers, but because land is so very expensive, it was hard to find a place to play."

The baseball field the special needs division had been using on Romeo Plank, near the Clinton Township Civic Center, wasn't meeting their needs. In addition to the difficulties the grass and dirt field posed to the young disabled athletes, Wittstock said the division ran into scheduling problems with other teams as well.

"Some of these parents come a long way with their kids and it's a chore to get them ready and then they come out to play and there's another team on the field," she said. "They were really nice fields, but it was time we had our own."

After a visit to Michigan's first adaptive baseball diamond, the Miracle League field in Southfield, Wittstock was impressed and determined to somehow get a field made for the Challenger division.

"The adaptive field in Southfield is completely rubberized and it's wonderful for disabled kids, but after talking with parents, we decided that if we were ever going to build our own field, we wanted to keep it as natural as possible," Wittstock said. "We love the look of a baseball field with grass, so we decided to go with rubberized base paths."

So two years ago, Wittstock got in touch with Clinton Township officials who told her that if she could fund it, she could build it. Her nephew, architect Mark McBride, of McBride Studios in Royal Oak, helped her budget and draw up plans for the field. And when the total cost came out to a whopping $60,000, Wittstock knew she needed to start sending the plans out to local businesses to raise funds right away.

"I quit my job and worked full time on the field," Wittstock said. "Luckily, my husband could support us. It was hard work, but I've met so many people and kids through this whole experience that it has just been a joy."

The Detroit Tiger Foundation got the ball rolling with a $10,000 donation and told Wittstock that if she could find someone to match that donation, they'd give her another $10,000 in return for naming rights of the field. Bill LaKritz, owner of a retail leasing company, was that person.

"I sat down to talk with Bill about the field and when he told me he was going to match the Tiger's donation, I couldn't believe it!" she said.

The second $10,000 the Tigers agreed to donate actually came entirely from former Detroit Tiger first baseman Sean Casey, who has a disabled sister-in-law, Wittstock said.

"We let Sean Casey name the field and they chose to name it after his wife's grandfather, Norm Hott," Wittstock said. "Mr. Hott was a very, very loyal baseball fan and since Sean Casey's wife, Mandi, has a sister who has special needs, this whole process was very special to them."

Wittstock said she's raising the remaining $30,000 on her own through local businesses and recently hit a setback when the township informed her she had to pay for the field's drainage system. Construction is just weeks away and in order to meet the mid-May tentative opening date and kickoff of the Challenger Baseball season June 1, time and money are a concern.

"It's going to be such a beautiful park," Wittstock said. "There will be walkway to the restrooms, two covered pavilion areas for picnics and what I really liked about this park is that there are a lot of shade trees. Some of the kids have problems with being out in the sun for long periods of time, so it's great that they're there for protection."

In addition to the rubberized base paths for easy maneuvering, Norm Hott Field will have bases that are flush to the ground, a larger dugout to accommodate the children's wheelchairs and walkers and the township has decided to enlarge the parking lot. A long walkway will connect the parking lot to the field and will feature a circular brick paver area where a Norm Hott Field sign will be on display.

Wittstock said she's using the circular brick paved area as another fundraising opportunity. Businesses, families or individuals can buy a brick and have their name engraved on it for everyone to see when they pass by.

For more information about Norm Hott Field and Challenger Baseball, or to register a child by June 1, call Marilyn Wittstock at (586) 781-5547 or e-mail mwitt26@msn.com. Registration is $30 for team shirts, hats, trophy and end of year party.

The little league division doesn't count strikes and outs, Wittstock said, and actually, doesn't keep score at all.

"Every child gets a chance to hit and play the field. We're teaching them the game, but it's more about having fun," she added. "And just seeing how much joy this brings to the parent of a disabled child is amazing. To give these kids the opportunity to play is just great."