Many churches have events to brings church members together, but the church slow-pitch softball league hosted by Our Savior’s Lutheran Church brings eight different churches together to get outside and compete.

With nightly double-headers Sunday through Wednesday between churches throughout the season, the league builds community between churches over a summer of activity and competition.

The league, which Manager Donna Constant estimates to have been around for over 70 years, has brought with it many stories and brightened many days. Constant’s favorite memory of the league is when a few members said the league had changed their lives.

“They told me how their grades were terrible, they had a low self-esteem, they didn’t have a ton of friends,” Constant said. “And now coming out here every week and playing ball has changed their lives.”

Constant said the league gets a lot of people away from screen time, even if it is just for one night per week.

It’s not just teenagers and adults who can get involved on the field. In an effort to provide the same opportunity for children who may not be old enough to play on a team, there is now an opportunity for youth to take the field on Sunday evenings from 5-6:30 p.m. before two churches face off.

“They are playing from four to 12 [years old],” Constant said. “We play with all of them to let them get out there and have a good time. Get away from the phones, away from the computers, and make new friends and get out and play ball.”

One of the league’s most popular traditions is the pie Constant serves at the concession stand. This all started when Constant made a strawberry lemonade pie for a competition at the Cheese Curd Festival, placed on the podium about eight years ago.

Constant realized people really enjoy these pies and began to sell them during the softball games. Now there are anywhere from 12 to 15 different types of pie sold at each game, and many of the players and spectators find themselves enjoying a slice after each game.

This pie brings people from all over the area to come out to a game just to taste a piece of pie. Constant said the pie is part of the reason young people come out to the games, building up the family environment.

“People drive from River Falls for a piece of pie,” Constant said. “We try to make this, like I said, family oriented.”

Constant said there are plans in the works for field improvement, including the installation of a bathroom and a concession stand with more space. The goal for Constant is to make these improvements through fundraising rather than spending the church’s funds as much as possible. In addition to the upcoming improvements, Constant looked back on previous improvements, including field lighting and seating.

“I went to our church president in probably 2010, and I said, ‘If I raise money can we start fixing this up?’” Constant said. “Every year since 2010 we’ve made improvements. We’re on our second playground. We’ve got a kids’ playground, we’ve added bleachers, we’ve remodeled the interior.”

The reason Constant got so involved in the first place is because of what it meant to children in the area. Constant recalled hearing people play on the field from nearby, and grew interested in helping fix it up.

“My house is right across the road,” Constant said. “I can sit on my deck, and I can watch this field, and from the time my kids were little, you could hear that ‘ting, ting, ting’ of the ball going.”

With the summer-long stretch of games coming to a close, the annual tournament is on the horizon. The tournament involves each of the churches in a double elimination bracket, taking place July 30 and Aug. 6 throughout much of the day.

The churches involved in the league that fans can expect to see at the tournament are Our Savior’s, English Lutheran, St. Mary’s - Big River, St. Francis, C3, Living Waters, Bethel and Zion.

Constant said this league is a special one, and many people fall in love once they get involved for the first time.

“This field changes lives, it really does,” Constant said.