Collaboration creates new memorial signage for MFL MarMac baseball field

Visitors to the south entrance of the MFL MarMac Monona Center will see “Welcome to Terry M. Heald Memorial Field” emblazoned across the back of the home baseball dugout. (Submitted photo)

Other signage notes Heald’s MFL MarMac coaching statistics. (Submitted photo)

MFL MarMac senior baseball player Elias Hatt and Randy Fuelling, a member of MFL’s 1976 state champion baseball team, worked together to create new signage honoring coach Terry M. Heald. They chatted about the project, which will be unveiled this week, during a recent showcase of MFL MarMac’s MORE authentic learning projects. (Photo by Audrey Posten)
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
A new memorial sign at the MFL MarMac baseball field honoring state championship-winning coach Terry M. Heald will be officially unveiled this week.
Senior baseball player Elias Hatt spearheaded the project through MFL MarMac’s MORE (More Opportunities. Real Experiences.) authentic learning class. He was pitched the idea by members of MFL’s 1976 state champion baseball team.
The group included Randy Fuelling, who collaborated with teammates to create the original blue memorial sign near the outfield and name the field in honor of Heald after their coach’s passing in 2006.
“The next summer, in June, we had a sign made and had a ceremony. We invited Terry’s wife, son and daughter and dad to Monona for an unveiling,” Fuelling recalled.
At that time, the school’s south entrance by the baseball field wasn’t heavily used. An uptick in traffic in recent years prompted them to re-evaluate the sign, whose back was bare wood. Fuelling again joined teammates Randy Vogt and Larry Meyer, also the high school principal, as well as athletic director Erik Peterson to brainstorm ideas.
“Erik suggested doing something on the back of the dugout because of all the traffic going by,” Fuelling said. “We thought we could take the sign down and put it on the back of the dugout, but the sign was so small compared to the size of the back of the dugout, so we came up with the thought to re-design something.”
Fuelling’s sister and MORE program instructor, Melissa Haberichter, suggested a partnership. As a senior, player and self-described “big baseball guy,” Hatt was the perfect fit to make it happen.
His efforts included meeting with sign vendors to find the best design that would fit the space on the back of the home dugout. Hatt also got quotes for lighting, so the sign will stand out as people drive by.
The project began to grow further as Fuelling learned Hatt and the latest generation of MFL MarMac baseball players knew little about Heald and why the field was named for him.
“That’s when I decided we should put more than ‘Terry M. Heald Memorial Field’ on the back of the dugout. We should honor him in another way,” Fuelling said.
Heald coached MFL’s baseball team from 1963-1967 and 1972-1979, compiling a record of 305-109. This included four state qualifying teams and the 1976 state champions. Heald was named Northeast Iowa District Coach of the Year in 1976 and State Class A Coach of the Year in 1978. He was inducted into the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1988.
Now, not only the words “Welcome to Terry M. Heald Memorial Field” will adorn the back of the dugout, but so will signs noting the school’s state qualifying and state champion baseball teams.
A blue plaque on the press box and concession stand building has a photo of Heald and his coaching statistics. Another plaque features a poem about Heald, written by baseball team bus driver Ivan Krueger.
“He wrote it in honor of the 20th reunion of our team in 1996. Through Ivan’s son, I got permission to put this on a plaque as part of our project,” Fuelling said. “Now, we will be able to carry it forward to future generations because they will get a bit of a history lesson from looking at the plaque, figuring out why the field was named for him in the first place. It makes me feel good.”
Hatt is proud of the project for this reason too.
“It’s a good way to honor [Heald] and let everyone know why the field is named after him,” he said.
Through the project, Hatt will also leave his own legacy at MFL MarMac.
“It’s a good feeling, knowing I made that and everyone gets to see it and enjoy it,” he reflected.
The new signs will be unveiled at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 22, when MFL MarMac hosts Midland for the first home game of the season.