Play Ball. Those were the words we were waiting to hear back in April. It seems like it was yesterday that I was marching down Main Street with the players and coaches from Farmingdale Baseball (FBLI). For most of the more than 1,000 boys and girls the season is now over (there are some travel/tournament teams still playing through the summer). I had the pleasure to participate in Baseball Day in June. It was a fun-filled day filled with team skills competitions, All-Star games, popcorn, cotton candy and lots of smiles. This is also the day when the younger divisions get their participation trophies. I had the honor of assisting FBLI President Tom Sabellico hand out the trophies. It was a great feeling to see the big smiles from the players as they came up one by one to receive their trophies. The kids played hard through the season, learned a lot, but most importantly, had fun. We are very fortunate to have a group of dedicated community members to run the league. We can easily forget the amount of time and effort that goes into operating a league that has more than 1,000 players. Parade Day, Baseball Day and The POPS Park Classic are events that most local baseball leagues do not put on. It's a labor of love that the board of directors and the league directors carry out to enable the children in our community to experience these special days. The great game of baseball is a binding force in our community. It's very important for our children to have the opportunity to play. I would like to thank all the managers and coaches for taking the time to be part of the baseball experience week after week. Teaching, coaching and encouraging. The league directors get an additional thank you. Scheduling, mediating, listening and coordinating. The biggest thank you has to go to the board of directors for putting in endless hours year-round to assure that there are fields to play on, equipment to use, uniforms to wear, and rules to follow. As I travel around Long Island with my son's travel team, I get to see firsthand how many other Long Island communities run their programs. I have to say we are very fortunate to have FBLI. It truly is an organization that makes our community unique. Thanks for enabling our children to experience the wonderful sport of baseball.