So, who is the field for?

Sparrow's Superstars. A Lansing T-ball team for physically and mentally handicapped children that are treated at Sparrow Hospital.

Right now, the team is playing on ballparks in Lansing that are sometimes too bumpy, sometimes too hard to access and certainly unfriendly to their needs. They hardly notice, though--or complain. They're just happy to be hitting the ball, running the bases and pounding their mitts like regular old players.

And that's what makes the field so worth it. These five, six, seven and even 13-year-olds wouldn't feel slighted in the least if they didn't get their own grand and expensive field. They're just excited that its happening.

I got to talk to two of the players at the spaghetti dinner, 5-year-old Sonya Webster and 13-year-old Katie Frayer, pictured below (taken by my lovely photographer, Audrey Aquino).

Sonya Webster, 5

Katie Frayer, 13

Sonya has cerebral palsy, and Katie has arthrogryposis, and really these pictures say it all. Sonya was just as you'd expect a 5 year old to be, precocious, antsy and curious. And Katie, young though she looks, was mature and collected, and most of all comfortable with herself.

I didn't get to meet a lot of the team, though. Like Ethan Fox, the Butterfly Child, who was featured in a Lansing State Journal video by Ryan Loew. If you have the time, it's really worth it to watch.