With more than 200 young baseball players last year in the Franklin County Dixie Youth organization, there was a certain limit to how many games could be played on just one field.

With two young boys himself — ages 5 and 8 — Brett Herring saw just how desperately his community lacked the resources it needed and decided there was something to be done.

Herring — with the help of Franklin County Dixie Youth President Keith Zimmerman and many others — has recently kick started efforts in hopes of building a second youth field, set to be completed before the beginning of the 2018 youth season.

Through donations from a GoFundMe page, Franklin County has raised more than $11,000 of its posted $24,500 goal in a little more than two weeks.

“I know it doesn’t seem like much to have a second baseball field, but it would mean the world to them,” Herring said. “That’s the best way I can put it.”

Located in Bude just a few minutes from where the Franklin County High School baseball team plays, the current youth baseball field has housed citizens of Franklin County since the mid 1960s.

Last season, Zimmerman said the field had multiple games being played on the field five days a week. He said at certain points to fit in all the games, players as young as 5 and 6 were still playing close to midnight.

“With another field we will be able to play different age groups on the same night,” Zimmerman said. “It will relieve a lot for the kids and the families.”

Herring said after he communicated with Zimmerman about the project, the next step was a meeting with the Town of Bude to make sure the organization would be able to secure the land for a new field.

Herring has also established the organization into a nonprofit, allowing donations to be claimed as tax deductible.

With recent approval, the league is set to sign a 20-year lease Tuesday for the more than 5 acres of land directly adjacent to the current youth field.

“This is a big step for us,” he said.

With the land soon to be in their name, Herring said construction for the field should begin shortly after.

“It’s a pretty good canvas to work with. There are some drainage issues that we need to get straight, and that will be the first step,” Herring said. “The plan is to do our homework with how we want dugouts and fences to be built. The more people and ideas we get involved, the better.”

Zimmerman said while donations will be used to build a new field, the organization also plans to update the old field.

“The money we raise will all make a cycle and benefit kids and families,” he said. “We are a small community, so we want kids to have pride in baseball and want to play together and be in a community that plays together. We also want to reach out to neighboring communities so we can hopefully host some small tournaments in the future.”

Herring said though he is pleased with the donations already collected, he doesn’t want the public to stop anytime soon.

“Building a baseball field is not cheap,” he said. “We are not going to cut any corners. We want to make sure we have something nice for these kids and this community.”

To make a donation, visit www.gofundme.com/franklincountymslittleleague or make a check or money order out to Franklin County MS Little League and mail to the attention of Candice Sanders, Franklin County Little League, 710 Homochitto Campout Road SE, Meadville, MS, 39653.