Wausau, Wis. — The Wisconsin Woodchucks and team owners Mark and Donna Macdonald are proud to be a part of the Wausau community. Through partnerships with local businesses, donations in kind, and employing local residents for the summer, the Woodchucks continue to give back to and support the community in 2017.
The Woodchucks support game-day initiatives to raise money for certain causes in partnership with local businesses. In 2017, the Woodchucks raised $14,250 for these causes. Each home run scored by a Woodchucks player raised money for Blessings in a Backpack courtesy of K-Tech Kleening totaling $3,000. Every time a Woodchucks player was walked, money was raised for JDRF in partnership with Crystal Finishing Systems Inc. with a grand total of $10,000. In addition, each time a Woodchucks pitcher got a strikeout at home, money was raised for the Boys and Girls Club of Wausau courtesy of Cellcom K’s for a cause totaling $1,250.
The Woodchucks also held specific events during games to support specific causes in the community. On July 8th, a charity police vs. fire softball game was held to raise funds for fallen Detective Jason Weiland. $1,070 was donated to the Weiland Memorial Fund as a result of the event. July 20th was Christmas in July Night and a toy drive was held for Ministry St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital. On July 22nd, the Woodchucks auctioned off custom jerseys on Marshfield Clinic Cancer Awareness Night. The auction raised $1,500 for cancer awareness.
In addition, the Woodchucks work with local youth sports teams and bands for fundraising efforts. This includes a ticket package that organizations can sell with a certain amount going back to their organization. The Woodchucks are happy to support these organizations and match all funds that are raised during the fundraisers. In 2017, a total of $1,770 was raised for youth sports teams and $630 was raised for the Wausau East Band.
The Woodchucks also partnered with Dovorany Orthodontics for Woody’s Reading Club, a summer reading program that local schools and libraries can participate in and earn a free ticket to a Woodchucks game along with other prizes such as a ballpark snack and game tokens. This summer 30 schools in the area and many local libraries participated in the reading program. This included 317 classrooms, 268 teachers and 6,117 kids and brought 338 people through the gates at Athletic Park.
The Woodchucks had game day initiatives to support various groups in the Wausau community. This included the Marshfield Clinic Hometown Hero of the game which brought a local police, fire, first responder, or Military member to a game to be recognized on field for his or her service. At every home game there was also a Cellcom Field of Dreams Team of the Night, providing local youth baseball, softball and dance teams with the opportunity to attend the game free of cost and to join the Woodchucks players on the field during the pre-game ceremonies. There was a Fred Mueller Organization of the Night as well, which brought local groups such as Big Brothers Big Sisters, Marathon County Humane Society, local police departments, Americorps, Habitat for Humanity and more to Athletic Park with complimentary tickets to a game. A total of 46 local groups were brought out to a Woodchucks game in 2017.
During 2017, the Woodchucks gave back to the community with 30 donations in kind to various groups including churches, schools, public safety, public works, and sports organizations. The team mascot, Woody Woodchuck, made 25 appearances to community events varying from fun runs, walks, school assemblies, community celebrations and more.
Not only did the Woodchucks show their support through raising money, donations and mascot appearances, but the Woodchucks also employed 84 people for the summer. This is in addition to eleven summer interns and five full-time employees. The Woodchucks are happy to support the community by providing employment opportunities each summer and by giving people an opportunity for their very first job or for financial support during the summer months.
The Macdonald Foundation also supports Woodchucks employees and local college students by giving out Work Ethic Scholarships. These $1,000 scholarships were rewarded to one current employee in addition to eleven local college students who have distinguished themselves by working their way through school while maintaining very high academic and citizenship standards.
The Woodchucks are happy to support the community by hosting 64 events at Athletic Park. This not only includes Wisconsin Woodchucks home games but also includes American Legion games, local Little League games, and additional community events including the very first Red, White & Boom 4th of July Festival! 59,913 people attended the events at Athletic Park this summer. The Woodchucks ranked 7th in the Northwoods League in attendance and 13th for all summer collegiate baseball teams in attendance. The Woodchucks pride themselves in creating a family-friendly, affordable experience for the community.
The Woodchucks and owners Mark and Donna Macdonald strive to improve the area around Athletic Park as well, with the latest renovation of the first base side, the Bullpen, occurring in 2017. Over $7 million has been invested into Athletic Park and in the improvement of North Wausau. This includes the many ballpark renovations that have taken place since 2014 as well as the addition of the community park outside of the ballpark gates that is open to the public.
Thank you to the community, local businesses, our sponsors and the Macdonald family for your support.