October 12, 2008
- Lewiston, Idaho
Inmates help make World Series a success
A crew of inmates from Orofino drags the infield Friday at Harris Field. By Matt Loveless
LEWISTON - You can't get a good view of a baseball game if you're behind bars,
or for that matter, bagging sand. Some might not consider them the most upstanding citizens, but they're part of an essential group of volunteers at Harris Field, picking up what gets left beneath your feet. "The guys go around, they pick up trash," said Idaho Correctional Institution Orofino Projects Officer Larry Warren. "Sometimes they'll go through and help with the grounds work, and so forth. We were down here yesterday doing a lot of prep work getting ready for all the people to come in." They are the inmate crew from. You can see them dressed in red, but they blend right into a sea of people at the ballpark. Warren said these particular inmates aren't a threat to anyone who is there to watch a ballgame. "They've gone through quite an extensive classification process," he said. "They've been screened really heavily before they get a chance to come into our program and wind up on a job like this." Some of these workers were happy enough with their previous job. "Last week when we had the flooding here, they were sandbagging," said Mike Johnson with World Series Game Management. "So, they go from sandbagging to come here." "First thing that happened, we came out here, had a tarp sitting out here that sandbags were sitting around the whole thing," said Warren. "So, they got to pick up sandbags the first thing they did when they came in." But, the difference between Harris Field and up the river at Orofino and Kamiah, at the Series, there is some top-quality college baseball, seats down the first base line, and a little outdoor relaxation. Mike Johnson said organizers couldn't make the Series happen without the inmate work crews. "They're a big asset to the Diamond Shop grounds crew, and they're a big help to me," said Johnson. "I just appreciate all their help." |
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