EAST BUTLER — East Butler baseball and the Schnur family go hand in hand.

For 60 years, neither has existed without the other.

George Schnur was among the founders of the East Butler Baseball Association, a four-team Little League consisting of 60 players. Dess Schnur was the second baseman on the Indians during that team’s first season in 1951.

The organization began on a field across from the East Butler Fire Hall. But that property was sold to Magnetics for $5,000 a year later as that company planned expansion.

“There was an uproar in the community when that field was taken away,” Dess Schnur recalled. “No one knew where the kids were going to play.”

Then the present site was acquired from the Nute Eyth family and the rest is history.

“The way it’s grown over the years has been truly amazing,” Dess Schnur Jr. said. “There’s been so much volunteer work done here.”

Dess Schnur Sr. went on to coach the Indians and his own son, Dess Jr. Now Dess Jr. is coaching the Indians and his son, Cody, who plays for the team.

The generations were honored recently as Dess Sr., Dess Jr. and Cody all threw out ceremonial first pitches prior to an all-star tournament at the EBBA last weekend.

“I feel proud when I look around here,” Cody, 12, said. “I know my family had a lot to do with all of this.”

When Dess Jr. was through playing baseball at Pitt, where he lettered for four years, he began helping his father coach East Butler’s American Legion team.

Dess Jr. has now been coaching Little League for six years and is the current president of East Butler Little League.

“When my dad gave me the opportunity to coach with him, I knew I’d be doing it at some level for a while,” Dess Jr. said.

“My family has always been all about baseball. This facility is like our second home.”

While East Butler baseball began with four Little League teams, it is now home to 320 players from T-Ball all the way up to American Legion.

“It’s still going strong,” Dess Sr. said. “We still have 15 players on a team in Little League. A lot of places don’t like to have that many on a team.

“Knowing I was one of the original players and that my father was one of my first coaches, along with Chuck Hetrick, means a lot to me. Baseball became my life.”

Dess Schnur Sr. coached for more than 30 years and won 423 games as manager of the East Butler Legion team, including 10 Butler County championships and 11 regional invitations. He is an American Legion and Butler County Sports Hall of Famer.

Schnur has been Director of Field and Stadium Operations at Pullman Park since 2008.

“My goal has always been to provide the most optimum conditions possible for players to play baseball,” he said.

“I have a lifetime of memories here. The future of East Butler baseball still looks good.”

Cody is a pitcher and has been playing baseball since age 5.

“I love pitching, batting ... just the whole game,” he said. “I know I’ll be playing for a long time.”