American Riviera Bank announced Friday that it will be matching all donations, up to $7,500, towards replacing Dos Pueblos Little League equipment damaged in the shed fire in Girsh Park.
The arson-suspected fire took place after midnight Wednesday at Girsh Park in Goleta and completely destroyed the shed and its contents, all of which belonged to Dos Pueblos Little League.
According to the league’s website, the shed and damaged contents totaled up to approximately $30,000 and the DPLL Board is looking to the community for donations to help replace the shed and lost equipment, which includes two pitching machines, three sets of bases and handcarts, three field hoses, carts and adapters, two wheelbarrows, two line paint sprayers, a PA system, umpire equipment and gear, first aid supplies, and a folding table and chairs.
“As soon as we heard about the loss of the DPLL shed, we knew we had to do something,” said Joanne Funari, American Riviera Bank executive vice president and chief operating officer, in a press release from the bank. “American Riviera Bank has been a staple in the Goleta community for years and many of our employees grew up playing ball at our beloved Girsh Park. They used that very shed to store their equipment.”
With the matching fund, American Riviera Bank aims to jumpstart fundraising efforts and raise at least half of the lost funds, according to the release.
“While this appears to be a random act of vandalism, DPLL is significantly impacted by the loss of the structure and equipment,” said Jeff Palmer, Dos Pueblos Little League president.
“Fall baseball practices and tournaments held at Girsh are also affected by this fire, but we are going to do our best to replace equipment as soon as possible. We can’t thank American Riviera Bank enough for the long-standing relationship and support of our program, and the generous offer to match donations.”
Kevin Sturm, Dos Pueblos Little League communications director, said American Riviera Bank is a long-time sponsor of the league, calling the bank its “extended baseball family.”
Sturm added that the league has received a lot of support from the community following the shed fire, and that even Ventura Coastal Little League has reached out to offer its support.
Sturm also told Noozhawk that Dos Pueblos Little League has already started receiving donations and is “approaching $3,000,” as of Friday evening.
“Which has been phenomenal,” Sturm said.
American Riviera Bank has created a fundraising account at its Goleta branch, located at 5880 Calle Real, but donations can also be made at any of the bank’s locations or online.
— Noozhawk staff writer Serena Guentz can be reached at sguentz@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.