The town I live in just changed their rules for Little League. Previously, you had to be in Kindergarten and be 5-years old to start play. Now, in order to be compliant with some national rule, they only have to be 5-years old. So, my son can play this summer even though we waited a year to send him to Kindergarten. The question now is. . . Do I really want him to be in Little League? Upon further investigation, parents are required to volunteer 8 hours per year or pay an extra $100 next year (on top of the $120 you have to pay just to register.) Also, you're required to sign a waiver that will "waive, release, absolve, indemnify, and agree to hold harmless the local Little League, Little League Baseball, Incorporated, the organizers, sponsors, supervisors, participants, and persons transporting my/our child to and from activities from any claim arising out of any injury to my/our child whether the result of negligence or for any other cause." This means if the driver of the bus is drunk and crashes the bus, I can't do a darn thing. They do background checks each year, but honestly, how fool-proof are those? Plus, they are really serious about their Little League here. They built a whole sport complex just for Little League. Do you know who comes to every Opening Day? Bob Uecker. I'm not kidding about that, either. Plus, this will pretty much take care of the entire summer. This is a huge time commitment for all of us. My husband and I have to really think about this. I'm not comfortable with the waiver at all and the volunteering hours are a lot to ask when all our volunteer time is given to the church right now.
If you have any feedback, thoughts, or opinions, I'd love to hear them!