ABS Park continues to expand opportunities for young athletes

The ABS Park in Evergreen is humming with energy on a sunny spring day.  

In almost 80-degree weather, parents and spectators watch a high school baseball game on the park’s main field, cheering with every pitch and hit. A younger group of boys gather on the adjacent field for an after-school Sluggers practice. A one-on-one hitting practice is underway in the park’s indoor training facility.  

It is exactly the type of activity that those who started ABS Field want to see. 

“Everybody is seeing the positive influence this is having,” said Chris Gillette, youth sports director for ABS Park and the creator of Sluggers Baseball. “And we would definitely like to see that expand.”  

ABS Park is a sports complex home to a baseball field, Little League field, conditioning field and a state-of-the-art indoor training facility.  

Located off East Reserve Drive in Evergreen, the space was created to instill a passion for sports in children, specifically baseball. The organization’s stated aim is to ensure that “no one under 18 years of age is denied the opportunity to participate in sports because of a financial barrier.”  

It began two decades ago when Ralph and Karen Wisher, Evergreen residents, donated more than 20 acres of land on Spring Creek to encourage children to engage in youth sports through a nonprofit organization.   

The Wisher family business, Able Body Shop, was a major backer of the effort, eventually lending its name to ABS Park. 

In 2021, ABS Park LLC partnered with Gillette’s Sluggers Baseball initiative. Sluggers Baseball is a more advanced baseball academy for kids in the area. The league is intended to complement all the existing youth baseball leagues in the valley, such as Kalispell’s PeeWee Baseball and Babe Ruth Baseball leagues, according to Gillette. 

Gillette himself is a former college baseball player who wanted to offer a more advanced program for kids in the valley to better prepare them for a future in the game.  

“Baseball is peaking,” Gillette said. “The interest in the sport is peaking. And all of these organizations are contributing to that, from PeeWee to Babe Ruth to school programs.” 

While the park is home to Sluggers baseball teams, the facility also hosts events throughout the year, including various tryouts, baseball camps, developmental fall ball, winter indoor workouts and travel ball.  

The sports complex is also a testament to the power of community. The Evergreen Rotary Club funded the playground and restrooms, Flathead Electric Co-op installed fencing and backstops while local Evergreen businesses and the Evergreen Chamber of Commerce, among others, helped with community support and contributions.   

The latest addition, a 600-square-foot indoor training facility, opened just over a year ago. For Gillette, there are always options of what to do next.  

“People have expressed interest in, you know, maybe adding a lacrosse or rugby field or indoor gym,” Gillette said. He mentioned that while there are no projects currently underway, there has been chatter about maybe constructing a softball field to cater to traveling softball teams.  

“We’d like to build ABS Park up so it can be more of a complex,” he continued. “A place kids love to come.”  

Frank Garner, president of ABS Park LLC, said that the park was envisioned to provide a low barrier space for sports for kids to use at a recent Evergreen Chamber of Commerce meeting.  

“It’s just one of the greatest things,” Garner said. “As a kid who grew up in Evergreen, it’s just awesome to see.” 

Future projects include the addition of picnic tables under a newly completed gazebo and a walking path around the park’s 20 acres.   

Gillette said to keep an eye out for summer camps and programs hosted by Sluggers and ABS Park. To stay up to date, visit abspark.org.  

The sports complex is located at 326 East Reserve Drive in Kalispell.  

Reporter Kate Heston may be reached at 758-4459 or kheston@dailyinterlake.com.

    Columbia Falls' Jory Hill (14) drives in a run against Bigfork at ABS Park in Evergreen on Tuesday, April 15. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider