Build it and they will come.

These words that were whispered from an Iowa cornfield in the movie, "Field of Dreams" set the theme for the annual Jim Thorpe All American 10U Baseball Classic at Recreational Park last Saturday.

Teams from Jim Thorpe, Panther Valley, Bryn Mawr and Center Valley came to play in the first-ever baseball games played on the park's brand-new Little League field. Four games were played beginning at 9 o'clock and concluding with the championship at 5 p.m., which was won by the Center Valley Iron Colts over the Anthracite/Panther Valley All Stars. The other participants were the Mainline Baseball Academy Rail Splitters and the Jim Thorpe All Stars.

"This park and this field are just awesome," said John Flagler, coach of the Rail Splitters. I have asked to be invited back to next year's tournament."

Butch Reiner, chairman of the Penn Forest Township supervisory board, threw out one of the ceremonial first balls. "This is a great day for the township to have this event to mark the opening of our field," Reiner said. "We still have a way to go to finish what we started here, but it's wonderful to finally see kids playing baseball on this field."

Recreational Park, located on Route 903, has been under development for more than a year, and even though electric, running water and a septic system are still to be installed, the facility has been used by youth soccer organizations nearly a year before the advent of organized baseball.

Adjacent to the Little League diamond is a major league sized field where Connie Mack baseball games are hosted by a 13- to 17-year-old Jim Thorpe team.

"We operated the scoreboard with generator power today," Reiner said. "Once the electric installation is completed, we are putting in a concession building complete with bathrooms and a public address system that will be ready for next season."

Rich Strack, chairman of the park's advisory committee, believes the new field will become a site for a full schedule of spring and summer baseball games next year.

"I am proud to say that today we realized a vision that was conceived nine months ago to host a baseball tournament in the park. With Jim Thorpe's Connie Mack's team's triple-header played on the same day with this tournament, a total of seven baseball games occurred here. It was great for the township, for the visiting fans, and especially for all the kids who had such fun playing the game they love."

Strack explained that tournament games at the park were played simultaneously with games at the Jim Thorpe Little League's McGarvey Field. "The park field is now the second home for the Jim Thorpe Little League," he said. "Beginning next spring, they will be playing on here as well as in town."

Besides baseball and soccer fields, Recreational Park has an all-purpose field that can be used for football games, a playground area, a walking trail, a dog park area, basketball courts, tennis courts and a gazebo.

"It's just a beautiful venue and the possibilities for future events is exciting," Strack said. "The park is in its infancy. We're just crawling now, but once we get walking, this will be a state of the art facility that people of all ages can enjoy.

"Jim Thorpe himself, who played baseball as one of his many sports, would have loved to watch these games today," Strack said. "We are already looking forward to have even more teams play in the All American Classic next year."