FORM meets FUNCTION
FORM meets FUNCTION
For most, knowing what to say comes easy. Knowing how to say it best can prove trickier. Enter PREVAILING WINDS CREATIVE. Whether you need to persuade, inform, instruct, clarify, influence, provoke and/or entertain, we can help.
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So send skyward the flare, raise a cry, drop-a-dime or shoot us an email. We are your partners in waiting—pens at the ready, minds strategic and discerning, and imaginations alight.
For most, knowing what to say comes easy. Knowing how to say it best can prove trickier. Enter PREVAILING WINDS CREATIVE. Whether you need to persuade, inform, instruct, clarify, influence, provoke and/or entertain, we can help.
A written vehicle—be it a letter, business proposal, essay, academic paper, marketing plan, speech, manual, or tweet—relates a story when organized and crafted effectively. Short or long, clinical or creative, your message should serve up the exceptional in lieu of the adequate. PWCreative offers you a trio of writer-partners who share a passion for the craft and the professional acumen born of deep and varied experience.
So send skyward the flare, raise a cry, drop-a-dime or shoot us an email. We are your partners in waiting—pens at the ready, minds strategic and discerning, and imaginations alight.
PREVAILING WINDS
creative
For the Love of Little League - Web Content
Berwyn Paoli Area Little League needed a website upgrade to boost enrollment. One that reflected their passion for the game and it's community orientation. Prevailing Winds swung for the fences, crafting an online home that attracted the attention and approval of none other than Little League International. Three sections are featured below.
AN INTRODUCTION TO BPALL
Little League is Community
This is our Little League; your Little League. An outpost of an American tradition with roots nestled in the late 18th Century. Our combined locality: a hillside, crossroads village--Berwyn--and a Revolutionary War flash-point site and early railroad hub--Paoli. Upon this land, we raise our families. And upon this land, we share in America's storied pastime as players, coaches, families and community.
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Community really is the operative word. The magic of Little League goes far beyond laughter and heroics on our fields of play. It's about neighbors joining together with neighbors. Children shoulder-to-shoulder in the welcome shade of the dugouts and siblings at play on the sun-splashed grass. Friendships born and renewed in the bleachers. Home-grown youth umpires gearing up. Volunteers prepping the diamonds, running the concession stands, and entertaining the crowds from the announcing booths.
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Berwyn Paoli Area Little League (BPALL) welcomes your sons and daughters. Together, we will teach them the games of baseball and softball in a safe and fun environment. And, together, we will enrich their young lives with the virtues and human graces of respect, teamwork, sportsmanship and courage.
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Start your journey today.
WHAT SETS LITTLE LEAGUE APART
With so many choices, why Little League?
Children and families have so many choices when it comes to youth sports. Choice is a blessing, as it enables children of all leanings and abilities to enjoy competitive play and provides balance for young bodies and minds across playing seasons. With so many options, why choose Little League?
A game like no other
As far as team-sports go, baseball and softball are certified originals. Take, for example, the unique geometry and composition of the field: a diamond within a gingko leaf, punctuated by coppery infield clay. Consider the absence of a clock, ensuring a leisurely pace and environment. Even the fundamentals of play are unique. The inversion of possession (defense holds and controls the ball). The emphasis on execution over invention. Even the ever-present potential for a comeback (a team at-bat can close ANY deficit). And let’s not forget those handsome ball-caps.
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The IT TAKES A VILLAGE culture
Little League runs on volunteers. Everyone gets involved to create a magical experience for the kids. Coaching, team management, infield lining/raking, field maintenance, concessions, even umpiring (they don’t do it for the paycheck)—all volunteers, all in it together. If you appreciate the opportunity to bond with your friends and neighbors and are open to new friendships, Little League paves the way. And the kids take notice and feed off the the healthy vibe of “everyone chipping in.” We need you.
The Field of Dreams setting
Seven ball-fields; one park. Few Little Leagues are so fortunate. Any given Saturday afternoon in Spring, BPALL little leaguers of all ages and stripes—tee ball, minors and majors, softball—take to our fields. Laughter and cheers filling the air. A community in shared fun, leisure and celebration. Much like the village greens of old.
Bonding in the dugout shade
If you have had the privilege of spending time in the dugout during a Little League game, you understand. The bonding. The laughter and chumming-it-up. The random, oftentimes hilarious conversations. And the collective, leaping-off-the-bench exhilaration as a teammate connects with the ball or rounds third with a full head of steam. The dugout culture is specific to baseball/softball.
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Activities beyond the ball-games
We put our magical and secure Field of Dreams setting to imaginative use beyond league play with a variety of special events. The parents-vs-kids ball-games are not to be missed. Home-run derbies are festive and excellent viewing. Movie nights at Field of Dreams are a treat for the whole family, as are the grilled burgers and dogs, provided by our long-time grill-master in residence (Tom Toscani). In 2020, we will host our first ever Miscellaneous & Meaningless Skills Tournament (just use your imagination). In short, BPALL offers a broad experience of spring- and summer-time fun for the whole family.
The annual Little League World Series within driving distance
One hundred and seventy short miles to our northwest (less than 3 hours drive) lies the town of Williamsport, the birthplace of Little League and site of the annual Little League World Series. For Little Leaguers, this is a dream summer mini-vacation. For BPALL families, it's surprisingly affordable (all the games are free and hotels, reasonable) and oodles of fun. So pack the car, take in the games, and watch your children dream of the day they and their BPALL teammates may take to the fields of Williamsport and compete before millions of television viewers for Little League's most coveted prize. For some BPALLers, it's already an annual tradition.
Whatever other sports you explore with your child, baseball/softball will prove a wonderful complement to their complete sporting experience. In two words: America’s pastime. Enough said.
KEEPING FIELD OF DREAMS PRISTINE
Maintaining the Dream - Behind the Scenes
It’s easy to take for granted. The lush green of the outfield grass. The carefully shaped mounds and coppery, smooth surfaces of the infield. Foul-lines and batter boxes—bright and true. Dugouts, fencing and sheds—tidy and safe. Field of Dreams is a pristine and secure home for our Berwyn Paoli Area Little League. The work that goes into keeping it beautiful might surprise you.
True to form, our local grounds crew are volunteers, donating countless hours each week to the care of our park. With seven fields in their charge, mowing is no small activity. “In the warmer months, in-season, Pete’s [Greskoff] down here grooming these infields at 6:00 am,” states his long-time grounds crew partner, Nick Romano. “It’s a labor of love. For all of us. And we do it, all of it, for the kids.”
Pete, Nick and fellow grounds-hound Bill Young have their work cut out for them. Mowing the grass—acres and acres of it—often several times a week during high season. Waging war on weeds and invasive grasses. Maintaining the infields. Attending to the batting-cages. Repairing fences. Trouble-shooting audio systems. Relocating bleachers. Clearing gutters. Even challenging the occasional hornet colony. The list goes on.
What you can do to help
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Rocks and other objects on the fields are a hazard for players and can damage mowers and injure the crew. Please keep your children from tossing rocks. We understand the draw. But challenge the little ones to skip stones across a local creek instead. Bill claims an all-time best of 14-skips across Crabby Creek. Any takers?
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Treat Field of Dreams as if it were your back-yard—it’s no stretch; this is your town center, your village green. Spot a candy-wrapper on the ground? Pick it up. Spy a player climbing for the dugout roof? Ease him down. Encounter some branches on the bull-pen mound. You get it.
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Volunteer to help. Beyond the regular maintenance of the fields and grounds, help for special projects is always needed. Step up to the plate and get those hands good and dirty with some infield clay. Your soul—and children, one day—will thank you for it. Reach out to our Volunteer Coordinators for more information at volunteers@bpall.org.