Dear Fellow Softball Enthusiasts,
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. The unseasonably warm January weather has my phone ringing with everyone getting active again. So it’s time to get going…
Opening Day will be here before we know it. Everyone should be preparing for registration and getting those fields back into playing shape. The District Meeting will be on Wednesday, Feb 22nd, 2017 at 6:30 PM. It will be held at the Donal Snyder Community Center at 2520 Pass Road in Biloxi.
League Presidents should plan to attend the meeting. Please pass along this invite to any new board members that would like to attend. Anyone else interested is also free to attend. It helps all of us to have people knowledgeable and ready to step in and help. I’d also appreciate if everyone would please let me know if there are any changes in your organization.
Lots of changes this year starting with the transition to USA Softball. It cements our ties to the United States Olympic Committee under the Team USA banner. It’s very exciting to have baseball and softball back in the Olympics in Tokyo 2020.
- Did you know? USA Softball is the primary funding source and the pipeline to the USA Softball National teams programs!
- Did you know? There are five National programs (Junior Women, Junior Men, Women, Men, and Men’s Slow Pitch) that wear the Red, White & Blue because of the efforts of USA Softball.
USA Softball, formerly the Amateur Softball Association (ASA)/USA Softball, a volunteer driven, not-for-profit organization based in Oklahoma City, OK, was founded in 1933 and has evolved into the strongest softball organization in the country. USA Softball has many important responsibilities as the National Governing Body of Softball in the United States which includes:
- Promoting amateur softball for all persons regardless of race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin or ancestry
- Establishing uniform softball rules and regulations
- Providing it with proper safeguards in accordance with the spirit of true sportsmanship and establish principles for ethical behavior and matters relating to conflict of interest as provided by the USA Softball Council and Board of Directors
- Encouraging the union of all eligible teams, organizations or groups into such separate associations with active membership in the USA Softball as may from time to time be deemed best adapted to advance the cause of amateur softball
- Establishing and maintaining by allied membership, alliances with non-profit associations or organizations devoted wholly or partially to the promotion and development of the game of softball on a state, regional or national level
- Promoting and conducting annual amateur softball championships
- Educating and training in the proper skills of amateur softball play and rules of the game through promoting, organizing, and conducting clinics, seminars and training courses.
A very important distinction between USA Softball and other athletic organizations. USA Softball is not a tournament organization. Recreational play and invitational tournaments are left to individuals, groups or organization to administer. USA Softball provides support to those entities to enhance and enable their efforts. As the National Governing Body, USA Softball conducts Championship Play events leading to the crowning of Local Association and National Champions.
I also encourage everyone to Like the USA Softball of South MS Facebook page. It’s the best way to stay in touch with the latest information. The URL to the group is below:
http://www.facebook.com/GulfCoastASA
Please RSVP if you plan to attend the meeting. If you don’t, I’ll probably be calling you. My cell number is 228-365-2301 if you need anything. Email is always good also at tstanley@cableone.net.
Thanks,,,
Tom
District Commissioner
USA Softball of South Mississippi
https://usasoftballsouthms.com/