SPANISH FORT, Ala. — Ed Dismukes was recently chosen as a WKRG-TV Care Team Award Winner. The local television station gives the award in recognition of outstanding community volunteers and is sponsored by Baldwin EMC.

Dismukes said he was asked to be in a commercial about volunteering by WKRG-TV but was unaware that he had won an award.The Spanish Fort Sports Association nominated Dismukes for his work on the sports field, which is next to the Spanish Fort Elementary School, presently called Dismukes Field. The project took approximately eight months and took him “thousands of hours” he said.

“I am sure a lot of people do what I do. Receiving the award is kind of nice, humbling and appreciated.You do what you can,” he said last week.

“Ed Dismukes kind of single-handedly spearheaded that football field on his own,” Robin Delaney, creative director for WKRG-TV said.

Recipients of the award are chosen for their community service, which they usually do on their own with their own inspiration, Delaney said. Dismukes became involved with the project because, at the time, the area kids did not have a football field.

Former Baldwin County Commissioner Allen D. Perdue gave the Baldwin County School Board of Education $60,000 to $65,000 to use for the site.

“We needed another baseball field and I had … the means to do some good,” Dismukes said.

Dismukes said he contacted the school board to get permission for the Spanish Fort Sports Association to use the money for the sports field and to start clearing the land. Clearing stumps, debris and pine trees was the first step. Dismukes said that companies got tired of him calling them for help with equipment such as bulldozers, but he said they now accept his calls since the field has been built.

“I really didn’t start out wanting to do that much, but once I got into it I had to see it to finish,” he said.

Future plans include a track around the baseball field.

“I was able to put enough effort and time into it along with other people,” he said. “I do what I can for the community.”

Approximately 50 volunteers worked on the project. The park is near completion except it lacks lighting. He said the city of Spanish Fort helped the sports association as much as they could.

“I know in the future they will do more,” he said.

The field has been used by Little League teams, as well as middle school and freshmen high school teams. On Saturdays he said there are about 1,500 people there from the hours of 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dismukes said that the project ended up being good for the community.

Delaney said that most of the recipients are typically quiet about their volunteer activities, and WKRG does its best to spotlight the hard workers. The winners just do things that make you feel a good about living in our community, he said.

“I guess I am just a big old bully and a good guy,” Dismukes said.