BUTLER TWP — No lights, but plenty of games.

Highfield Park was as busy a neighborhood baseball complex as any in the region.

“From Mother's Day through the end of July, we had tournaments up there every Thursday through Sunday,” park coordinator Ron Zawrotuk said. “We had a couple of tournaments in September, too.

“I was there every day, helping to get the field ready. I was put in charge of things up there and I took that responsibility seriously.”

But no more.

The four-field baseball complex is being torn out as the property is in the process of being sold to real estate development.

Zawrotuk, Don Kildoo, Gene Zawrotuk, Steve Kalina, Eddie Benko and others have taken care of the facility through the years. Highfield Park has been available for baseball since the late 1970s.

“I guess I'll have a lot of free time on my hands now,” Zawrotuk said.

The fields have hosted American Legion, Palomino, Eagle County and Colt League games through the years, along with a number of youth tournaments.

Atlantic Coast Baseball and West Penn Elite are two youth baseball organizations that used the facility often in recent years.

Kalina coached the Highfield Hawks when the facility first opened. Zawrotuk coached the Lyndora Lancers' Palomino team for 15 years there. Gene Zawrotuk coached a Butler County American Legion team there.

Butler played some high school games at Highfield as well.

“We hosted (Palomino) area and regional tournaments there, too,” Zawrotuk said.

He recalled taking an axe to cut out the edges on the field. Kildoo lined the field and mowed grass quite a bit.

“I sound like I'm tooting my own horn, but those lines were pretty straight,” Kildoo said. “I took a lot of care in putting those lines down. I took pride in my work.

“Dedicated people volunteered their time to make Highfield what it was. I'm gonna miss it. (The use of the fields) has been slowing down the last few years.”

Zawrotuk acknowledged that “a lot of kids are playing travel ball now. The neighborhood stuff is going away.

“We had fun with the kids. Kids always knew where they stood with us. All of us had fun ... it was all about showing respect for each other,” he said.

Dan Cunningham managed the Saxonburg team in the Eagle County league for years and Highfield served as their home field for a few of those seasons.

“We won a couple of league championships there,” Cunningham said. “I have fond memories of that field. There were games going on there six or seven days a week for a long time.

“It was one of the nicest fields you could play on in Western Pennsylvania. That was a major league caliber field to play on and that's because the people up there took such good care of it.

“From, a baseball standpoint, that park will be sorely missed,” Cunningham added.

Kildoo said he noticed the park being used less about five years ago.

“Travel ball and soccer kinda took over,” he said. “I enjoyed mowing grass there. If it got too hot, I just went home.

“I'm 78 now, Ron's around 74 ... It was coming to an end for us anyhow.”

No one appeared to be on the horizon to take care of the baseball facility had it stuck around.

“People don't want to put in the time,” Zawrotuk said. “That's why we never put in lights. I didn't want to be there until 2 in the morning.”

Zawrotuk, Kildoo and others ran bingo at the Highfield Hall to help offset costs of maintaining the field. A rental fee was charged to baseball organizations to play there.

Longtime sports broadcaster Jim Lokhaiser coached a youth baseball team at Highfield years ago.

“Just a great facility,” he said. “I feel sick over the situation there. We didn't have fields of that caliber when I was a kid playing ball. I hate to see one go away like this.

“It's sad, but that's today's world. There just aren't that many kids interested in playing baseball like there used to be. It makes me feel bad ... that park is gonna be missed.”