Inspiring Coach honoree finds his true calling with Miracle League

By MIKE BOLLINGER

The fun had gone out of coaching for Monty McLamb. Then, he saw a segment on television in 2008 that started him on the road to regaining that fun.

He found that joy through the formation of the Miracle League of Johnston County, and because of that work he has been named the Johnston Now Honors Inspiring Coach Award winner.

He had coached his two sons in various sports beginning when they were about five years old. “I was the typical dad coach. When they got to high school, I kind of bowed out of coaching them since they had their high school coaches,” he said. “I really didn’t have anything to coach, so I stayed out a year.”

Then, he was asked to coach in a youth league by parents of some of the players. “People were yelling at the umpires and the kids. The fun had been taken out of it,” McLamb said.

The TV segment McLamb saw was about Miracle League, a league that helps children with disabilities and special needs enjoy baseball. “I got in touch with them in Conyers, Ga. A lady named Diane talked to me and looked up information on Johnston County. She said, ‘You need one’, and sent me the information,” he said.

The concept of the Miracle League of Johnston County was born.

From there, McLamb said he contacted some people he knew through church and school activities, and they sat down one day and came up with a plan to start raising money.

“My Sunday School class was the first people I told about it,” he said.

Attorney Emery Ashley volunteered to do the legal work. “He got us set up,” McLamb said.

In 2009, the local league was incorporated. “We hit the ground running,” McLamb said.

At first, he said the goal was to raise $10,000. Then, following a presentation to the Smithfield Civitan Club, he spoke with a representative from the Partnership for Children of Johnston County, which was trying to raise money to build a park for children with special needs.

“We decided to combine forces to build a Miracle League field and a special needs park. Suddenly, we were looking at a $1 million budget,” McLamb said. “We started raising money in 2011. The Town of Smithfield provided the land for the field (at the Smithfield Recreation and Aquatics Center), but we couldn’t break ground until we had the money.”

Finally, through fundraising efforts and state grants, construction began in 2017. In April 2018, the park and the field were opened. “We had a crowd of about 400 people at the opening,” McLamb said.

The league had been playing at the community park in Smithfield since 2010 on a regular baseball field.

“We learned quickly the facilities were not compatible. Wheelchairs don’t roll well on dirt and walkers are very hard to navigate. We played eight years on regular fields,” McLamb said.

He was quick to point out that without the volunteers that come out every Saturday, the Miracle League could not operate. “Our league survives on volunteers. BB&T (now Truist) provided our first set of volunteers and gave us a donation,” McLamb said.

At the first game in 2010, there were 12 players. The season that finished this year, there were 78. “The league is designed for ages 5-18, but we don’t turn anybody away,” he said.

According to McLamb, there were more than 200 volunteers who helped this season. Between 30 and 40 are needed for each game. “You’re volunteering to help, but when you leave, you realize they (the players) have helped you,” he said. “We have high school kids who come out every week.”

Later this year, another fundraising effort will begin.

“We are going to try and raise about $150,000. When we built the field, we maxed out our finances. We are at the farthest point on the SRAC property. We want to build restrooms and a small picnic area. Our plan is to sit down with parents and come up with ideas to raise money,” McLamb said.

It’s easy to see working with Miracle League has become McLamb’s passion.

“You get addicted to it. Parents are surprised when I tell them I don’t have special needs kids,” he said.

After the Miracle League started, his wife, Kim, became certified in teaching children with special needs. She did so until her recent retirement from Four Oaks Elementary School.

“It can be tough to get out of bed on a Saturday morning, but when the first kid gives you a hug, it’s game on. Parents have told me I treat their kids just like kids. That’s the purpose of the league, they’re just kids on a baseball field,” McLamb said. “You’d be surprised at their personalities. They’re just out there to have fun. That’s what I like most about it.”

McLamb credited the people of Johnston County for getting the Miracle League off the ground and keeping it running.

“We owe all of this to the generosity of Johnston County. We may be the fastest growing county in the southeast, but people still believe in people. When somebody needs help, we still help them out,” he said.

For more information about the Miracle League of Johnston County and how to help, visit www.miracleleaguejc.com.