Snohomish Little League seeks help after thefts, damage to facilities

A Snohomish County Little League appears to have become the latest victim of vandals and squatters. In the past few weeks, the South Snohomish Little League saw much of their equipment stolen and broken, and their facilities used by vandals to squat and do drugs.

“It’s devastating and heart-wrenching. This is where my daughter has grown up, my nephews have grown up, all the kids that I’ve coached throughout the years,” South Snohomish Little League President Amanda Titus told The Jason Rantz Show.

“This is where our community spends our springs, watching these kids play ball. It feels very violating. It’s not a good feeling to go to a field that’s my home away from home, and now it’s scary and uncomfortable.”

Seven of the organization’s equipment sheds were broken into, had items stolen, and were lived in and used as spaces for squatters to use drugs, reported KIRO 7. In addition to literally stealing bases, the squatters also stole tools and a pitching machine.

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“We discovered that some squatters moved into a few of our larger equipment sheds on our property, damaging the siding to get in, and moved in beds and clothing, and stole items,” Titus said.

More than 300 kids are served by South Snohomish Little League, which has produced teams that have made it all the way to the Little League World Series. Events like this, however, threaten to undermine their chances before the season has even begun.

“The outpouring of love and support we’ve received from our family and communities has been amazing. I’ve personally interacted with a lot of my past players and current players, and they’re heartbroken,” Titus said. “I mean, that’s their fields. I was able to take my daughter out last night and show her some of the damage, and it makes them sad. It’s where they play softball and baseball.”

The little league has set up a GoFundMe page, and is hoping to reach $15,000 to replace the stolen equipment, repair the damage, and to add in more video cameras and lighting.

“That’s something we want to look towards for the future, so that we can keep this from happening to our field and create a safe environment for our community’s children.”

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