The backyard at 42 Village Woods Circle looks a little different these days. Owners Brett and Nicki Hudson splurged on what they called “the COVID distraction project”. With the help of many volunteers, the Hudsons built an incredible whiffle ball field they named “Robinson Field at 42 Village Woods Circle”. This is no ordinary whiffle ball field and the story behind how the idea came to fruition is quite intriguing and the historical value of it is significant.
It is important to note that both Brett and Nicki are avid baseball fans. Nicki, who grew up in Naperville, IL, is a lifelong Cubs fan. This past winter she finally achieved her dream of becoming a season-ticket holder at Wrigley, only to have her spirits crushed due to the pandemic and fans not allowed in stadiums (she has hopes for next season). Brett and his father Jack are card carrying members of Red Sox Nation, both inheriting the passion for baseball from Brett’s grandfather, who just happened to have been born in 1918.
Hudson shared, “I spent my early years listening to my grandfather talk about players like Babe Ruth, Dizzy Dean, Roy Campanella, and Mel Parnell.” His grandfather also had an extensive collection of baseball books in which Hudson immersed himself.
“Amazingly, my ability to recite Yogi Berra’s or Ted Williams’ career stats did not seem to impress any girls in high school. Or ever, really,” he joked.
Photo courtesy of Krista O’SullivanBrett said, “It seems a bit ridiculous now, but this whole idea started with thinking about replacing our house number (“42”) with a replica of Jackie Robinson’s retired #42. Indeed, that idea escalated quickly.” He was thrilled with the fact that Nicki supported his outlandish idea to turn their backyard into a whiffleball field, she jumped in with both feet and become an integral part in its creation, proving just how much she loves baseball.
“Starting with Jackie as a concept, the field slowly evolved into an homage to historical baseball parks specifically the style of the advertisements on the outfield walls, with nods to the ‘Negro Leagues’,” Hudson said. A defining feature of their field is a replica of Brooklyn’s iconic Ebbets Field scoreboard,” Hudson said. (Due to legalized segregation, talented black players were not allowed to play in Major League Baseball. 2020 is the 100th Anniversary of the “Negro League,” which was created on Feb. 13, 1920, by Hall of Famer Andrew “Rube” Foster and his fellow team owners. In 1947 Jackie Robinson broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier.)
While Brett takes a small amount of credit for the concept, he said it was a team effort. “Having been born with no artistic or construction skills to speak of, the bulk of the creation credit lays at the feet of my wife and father.” Nicki was responsible for most of the artwork, much of which was done freehand. He added, “My Dad is one of the great unofficial carpenters of modern times, and was instrumental in turning my crazy ideas into a plywood, 4×4, and 2×4 reality.”
While it was never their intent to make any kind of political statement with this project, Brett and Nicki felt as the events of the past few months unfolded in the United States, it was hard to separate Jackie’s memory from all that was happening.
“Jackie is one of the most important Civil Right figures in our nation’s history, and I hope he would be proud of what we have created here, especially if it introduces his legacy to a new generation of kids,” he said proudly adding, “Anyone is welcome to come by and say hey, and if you want to play a few innings, even better!”