Cut and pasted from Jeremy Telford

"VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:

Hey everyone! My name is Jeremy Telford and I am working with the leadership at Louisiana Tech University to hopefully make a beautification difference across campus.

With the beautiful, new baseball complex nearing completion, there is an immediate need for detail cleaning the walls and concrete walkways beyond left field and center field. We all want to ensure that fans and visitors to the new stadium see the very best LA Tech has to offer, and the resources for cleaning these areas just aren't currently available through the university.

However, I know how great our community is and am confident, as I've said in my talks with Dr. Guice and Mr. Sam Wallace, that our local citizens and Louisiana Tech University alumni will show up and help out to get these areas clean before first pitch in a few weeks.

We will need power washers, cleaning chemicals, roll off dumpsters, water trailers, water hoses, water, snacks, eye protection, work gloves, rakes, shovels, weed eaters, lawn mowers, lawn edgers, blowers, trash cans, buckets, and so on.

If you can't physically volunteer, we also have a need for money for stump grinding expenses, possible equipment rental, fuel and chemicals, snacks and water, etc.

My email address is: Jeremy.Telford11@gmail.com

Please let me know if you are willing to help.

Please share this post and tag friends who may be willing to volunteer or donate equipment!

I cannot promise anyone that they will receive anything in return except to simply know in their heart and mind that they have made a difference across campus.

We are starting with this centerfield project but know there are many other areas around campus that could use attention. The overall, far-reaching idea is that this will begin on the LA Tech campus and spread throughout campus, but eventually will make its way into Ruston and the rest of our community."

I have met with a few people from LA Tech and we definitely have a few red tape "hoops to jump through." There are things that have to be done which I had never thought of. For example, because students are actively living in the dorms, they have to be notified in advance of cleaning projects which could disturb their sleep (if they work overnight), their studying in their dorm rooms, or just if they're simply relaxing. All of these things make sense but just take time to get through.

We have already had a local businessman step up and donate his equipment and labor to clean the retaining walls and concrete beyond centerfield. If you go to my Facebook page "KristenandJeremyTelford," you will see some of the pictures of how bad it was. This particular businessman wanted to do all of this quietly without any recognition or mention of his name or business. The university leaders know, and knew, about all of these things, but apparently don't have the funds with all the budget cuts, etc.

We have also had another local businessman step up and offer his stump grinder and labor to grind about 6 or 7 stumps in this dorm quad area behind the outfield wall. His name is Taylor Estes and he owns ArborTech Tree & Stump Services here in Ruston. I would like for us to be able to pay to have his stump grinder teeth re-sharpened for him since he is donating his equipment, time, and expertise to help out. I am not sure how we will do this unless someone just steps up and writes him a check without going through the university.

Also, I have started a Facebook Group called, "Operation 'Positive Impact' for Louisiana Tech University." Here you will see even more pictures of campus, the pedestrian bridge, the fence row along Railroad Avenue behind the baseball stadium, the Neilson dorm quad of apartments (corner of Tech Drive and Alabama), and the railroad bridge. There is a lot of room for all of us to help!

As for donations, the university leaders know there are people who would be willing to donate money but they want all of this to go through the Foundation for accountability and tax purposes, I suppose.

There is still a lot (actually a ton) to get done around campus and the city, but if we can all come together, I think we can make a huge, positive impact over the next year or more.

A couple of other things about the stadium in general I would note:

1. I took a tour a few weeks ago of the entire thing and it is awesome! Can we all be professional critics and point out things "they should have done," "should not have done," and so on? Of course -- but that does no good. This stadium is by far the best in CUSA and will be great for years to come.

2. In polling of CUSA players and coaches, even going back to when we were in the WAC, the "Love Shack" was always voted as the #1 favorite stadium for opposing players. Now, I get it, right-handed sluggers love the field because of the left-field launching pad (short fence), and as a pitcher I hated it, but the positives are the housing beyond the outfield wall and the railroad tracks. This particular location, and all these different things, offer a very unique ambiance that is rare in college baseball. The key here is to take what is unique to us and capitalize on it instead of complaining and criticizing.

3. We have to come up with a great idea on how to safely get fans from the parking area and across Tech Drive at the red light. I can see this being a potentially dangerous situation. And Dr. Guice has already said a pedestrian bridge or walkway is not financially doable.