Jamestown Community Baseball

Dolce will join manager and Director of Baseball Operations Jordan Basile in leading the Tarp Skunks this season. He interned with the Tarp Skunks for one season and worked as the Assistant of Business Operations last year.

Dolce is a Jamestown native and recent graduate of John Carroll University where he earned his Bachelors of Arts and Science in Sports Studies and Athletic Administration, while minoring in Business.

In addition to his two years of working with the Tarp Skunks, Dolce has held positions working with the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, Babe Ruth World Series Baseball, John Carroll Wrestling, and the 2021 NFL Draft.

Former Director of Business and Sales Jacob Kindberg will continue to work with the Tarp Skunks as an advisor while Mike Ferguson will be brought in as a Marketing Executive focusing on sponsorship and activation.

The Jamestown Tarp Skunks are a member of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, a collegiate summer baseball league with teams across New York state. The Tarp Skunks will be back playing baseball this summer at Diethrick Park in June 2023.

The Sports Broadcasting Internship program is based in Jamestown, NY and is open to college students pursuing a career in sports broadcasting / sports journalism / or related field.  It is also open to any college that recognizes College Intern Credits for students. Interns will also receive an hourly rate of $14.50 for each hour put into the internship (an estimated $580 for each credit hour received).

• WRFA Internship Form (PDF Form)
• WRFA Internship Form (Word Doc)

As part of this program, interns will be working with a professional broadcast team and will learn how to prepare for and conduct a radio broadcast of a live sporting event. Additionally, they will also learn and gain experience in interviewing players/coaches involved with the team, producing in-game features, previewing upcoming games, and also providing game recaps.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS

The 2022 WRFA Tarp Skunk Broadcast team, included two interns from Jamestown Community College.

The Sports Broadcasting Internship program will run from June 1 through August 6, with an estimated 24 total games being broadcast. Interns are not required to attend every game and will instead have a schedule created based on their availability.

The first week will focus on an introduction to the program, including touring WRFA studios, meeting the broadcast team, and gaining familiarity with broadcast equipment. The second week will focus on a tour of Russell E. Diethrick Park press box, meeting the team management and coaches, and preparing for the first home game.

Each subsequent week, interns will follow a rotating schedule that involves learning how to conduct interviews with players and coaches, writing and producing a game preview and game recap, in addition to learning (and assisting with) live game broadcasts.

By the end of the season, each participating intern will be given the opportunity to participate in several of these live broadcasts.

RESPONSIBILITIES
All Interns must:

• Be available from June through early August
• Be willing to commit 4-8 hours/week
• Have flexible hours that include evenings and weekends.

QUALIFICATIONS

• All Interns must be 18 or older
• Strong public speaking skills
• Currently enrolled in an accredited college or university taking at least one class in the semester/quarter (spring) prior to participating in the program, or planning to take at least one class in the semester (fall) immediately preceding the program.
• Major or previous coursework in Broadcast Journalism, Communications, Media Arts, Audio Production, or related major
• Attention to detail, exacting standards, and superior organization skills
• Familiarity with the game of baseball
• Physical Qualifications: The press box at Diethrick Park is not accessible for some individuals with mobility issues. This means interns must be able to climb stairs to access broadcast booth and must be able to remain in a stationary position (sitting or standing in the broadcast booth) 75% of the time on location at the ball park

Deadline to apply is Friday, May 12, 2023.

• WRFA Internship Form (PDF Form)
• WRFA Internship Form (Word Doc)

Completed intern forms can be sent to WRFA @ RegLenna.com with “Summer Sports Internship Program” in the subject, or mailed to to WRFA Radio, 116 E. Third St., Jamestown, NY 14701.

For additional questions, send an email to the above address, use our Contact page, or call (716) 664-2465 ext 209.

For additional intern and employment opportunities, visit our Join the WRFA Team page.

WRFA Radio is committed to providing equal internship opportunities for all persons.

WRFA High School Sports Correspondent Collin Wood talks with Jacob Kindberg about The Jamestown Tarp Skunks off season and what to expect in 2023.

Listen to “Knock on Wood” with Collin Wood – a weekly HS Sports report focusing on Jamestown and the Chautauqua Region – every Thursday morning at 7:45 a.m. on WRFA-LP.

Rotary Club of Jamestown Communications Chair Sue Jones said the clubs bought out the game because they are committed to the community, “And we are also committed to the Tarp Skunks, which are a great attraction to our community. And so we decided to offer this as a thank you to the communities and all of the people, and especially the young people, to have a wonderful time at the ballpark.”

Jones said all three Rotary Clubs will be at the game, “With information about what they do, when the meet, and it doesn’t what club you belong to because the most important thing about Rotary is no matter what city you go to in the world you can go to Rotary. You just find out where the Rotary club meets and what time and you’re welcome there.”

Free tickets for the game are available at many Jamestown businesses, including the Reg Lenna Box Office, as well as at Diethrick Stadium and through local Rotarians.

For more information about Rotary or for tickets, you can contact Sue Jones at 716-665-8671.

Saturday’s game features the Tarp Skunks against the Elmira Pioneers at Diethrick Stadium. Gametime is 6:30 p.m. and you can hear it on 107.9 fm WRFA, or livestream on wrfalp.com

CCIDA CEO Mark Geise said the community is invited to attend the Jamestown Tarp Skunks‘ game tonight for free, “This is our 50th year in existence and we wanted to do something special to give back to the community. And we decided it would be great if we bought out the park for the night and then invited the community to come and watch a game for free, so that’s what we’re doing.”

The Tarp Skunks are playing the Batavia Muckdogs at 6:30 p.m. at Diethrick Stadium. You can also hear the game by tuning to 107.9 FM or livestreaming at wrfalp.com.

Collaborative Children’s Solutions

The free event will feature children’s activities including Pirates Arr for You, Marty’s Bubblegum Machine, and the Nickel City Reptiles and Exotics show.

Several local agencies, organizations and educational providers also will be there to share information about the programming they offer to help keep kids engaged during the summer months.

Parents and children are also invited to attend the Jamestown Tarp Skunk’s baseball game at 7:00 p.m. at Diethrick Park. The Tarp Skunks are hosting the Batavia Muckdogs. Fireworks will be featured at the end of the game.

You can also tune to 107.9 WRFA to hear the Tarp Skunk’s game or livestream the game on wrfalp.com.

WRFA’s Jason Sample and play-by-play announcer Norm Rodriguez interview Jamestown Tarp Skunks Manager Jordan Basile to preview the 2022 season, which begins on Thursday, June 2, 2022.

Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency Board Meeting (April 26, 2022)

The Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency board has approved a loan request to the company buying the former Welch’s Building in Westfield.

2 Portage LLC requested a $475,000 loan for the real estate acquisition. The Al Tech Revolving Loan fund loan has terms of 20 years at 4% interest. The project will be an adaptive reuse of the building with the total project cost of $11.5 million.

The IDA also approved a $90,000 loan to International Ordnance Technologies. The loan goes toward the repair a heat-treat furnace which had broken down. IOT manufactures machine gun links. The Jamestown Local Development Corporation approved a $90-thousand dollar loan for the same project at its meeting earlier this month.

A number of EDA (Economic Development Administration) CARES Act loan were approved by the IDA with the loans being used for working capital.

The businesses that had loan requests approved include:
– $41,000 for Merritt Estate Winery to buy juice to make wine for this season
– $125,000 for Artone Manufacturing LLC to assist with hiring and bringing on new employees
– $100,000 for Heritage Ministries to help with costs related to COVID test purchases and new equipment
– and $100,000 for Labyrinth Press Company to be used for hiring and training new employees.

IDA CEO Mark Geise informed the IDA board that in-person meetings will resume in May with meetings still being available over livestream on the IDA’s YouTube Page.

He also announced that in honor of the CCIDA’s 50th Anniversary that the IDA has bought out Diethrick Stadium for the June 30th Tarp Skunks‘ baseball game.

Jamestown Local Development Corporation Board meeting

The Jamestown Local Development Corporation board has approved downtown programming funds for several events, including the four proposed by Collaborative Children’s Solutions.

CCS Director Patrick Smeraldo requested $40,000 for four events that would span seven days.

The events that would take place include a children’s carnival downtown followed by a Tarp Skunks game at Diethrick Stadium on June 24; a Christmas in July event downtown on July 22 and possibly a three-on-three basketball tournament downtown followed by a Tarp Skunks game on July 23; a beer tasting event downtown on September 3 and the Labor Day Fest at Bergman Park on September 4; and an event around a scheduled hockey tournament at the Northwest Arena on December 2 with the downtown holiday parade on December 3. All four events would include fireworks.

Smeraldo said the events are designed to be for kids and families and that he’s not trying to make a profit on them, “I mean, we can put on these events for kids and then take the funds that are raised through grants and things like that or agencies coming in and then put on a Chris Heron, who came here and spoke to the kids at Jamestown High School. That’s the intent. To feed the money back into the kids and see how we can draw and create opportunities for them.”

Mayor Eddie Sundquist informed the JLDC board members that Smeraldo has been working with city staff to ensure the proposed events are in compliance.

The Board of Public Utilities had requested $50,000 in programming funds for a Climate Technology Conference. This conference is being funded in part by a NYSERDA grant received by the BPU that had a required match by the City of Jamestown. The two-day event is scheduled to take place October 18 and 19, 2022 and would tentatively utilize the Northwest Arena, Doubletree Hotel, and several other ancillary spaces downtown. JLDC approved the request contingent on approval by Corporation Counsel on the legality of a city entity using the program funds as the match.

The third proposal approved was a $6,000 request by Doug Sitler for a 10,000 Maniacs concert. The event had previously been awarded $25,000 in downtown programming funds but hadn’t included a request for sound and lighting. The total now approved for the event is $31,000.

Collaborative Children’s Solutions’ Pat Smeraldo address Public Safety Committee

A local organization is hoping to bring four events to Jamestown this year.

Collaborative Children’s Solutions‘ Pat Smeraldo made a presentation to the City Council Public Safety Committee about the activities he has begun working on.

CCS was the organization that took on organizing the downtown holiday parade this past December.

Smeraldo said it’s his mission to collaborate with the city, local agencies, and schools to create events that are family friendly, “To create seven days and evenings within the city starting from June 2022 to Christmas time, to go back and run four separate events. And actually since I met with the Mayor and his team last week, I’ve been approached about a couple other things.”

The four events include two with the Jamestown Tarp Skunks, events on Saturday and Sunday of Labor Day that include the traditional Sunday festival in Bergman Park, and the downtown holiday parade in December. All four events would include fireworks.

Council member Marie Carrubba requested that Smeraldo look into the possibility of the use of “low noise fireworks” for the four shows due to concerns about how fireworks affect pets and people with PTSD.

Public Safety Committee Chair Brent Sheldon said Smeraldo is working with the city on all of the events and has his own sponsorships. He is expected to be filing the special event application permits and insurance certificates needed in the near future.