Letter from the President - 10/23/2025
Hello Stars Nation! There are so many exciting things happening with the Stars and I can't wait to get everything up and going! As we officially start our new season, I want to congratulate two key people in their new roles. Cynthia Zarkowsky will be stepping up as Vice President and Adam Cacioppo will be assuming a new role as well as High School Director. The two of them combined with Chris Field, Youth Director, will continue to lead the Stars in the best direction for the future!
As a general rule, if you are not sure who to reach out to, reach out to Cynthia but here is some contact info to help as well.
Cynthia Zarkowsky - VP: info@lakecountystars.org
Adam Cacioppo - HS Director: hsdirector@lakecountystars.org
Chris Field - Youth Director: webmaster@lakecountystars.org
Zack Maze - Technology, Setmore, Scheduling & Communications: webmaster@lakecountystars.org
First on the agenda, our revamped youth clinics have started! Featuring new instructors, age-specific training, and two full hours of focused, these high-energy clinics are designed to build skills, confidence, and game readiness. Next up for the youth program: information on lessons included in the youth package will be coming out soon as well.
High School season kicks off on 11/2 with a meeting for all new to Stars HS Baseball at 6:30pm (please note new time) at the facility and then practices/strength & conditioning start the week of 11/3. We are VERY excited to announce our partnership with Tactic Training next door where all teams 13U and up receive as part of their fees 1x a week training with the experts over there!
I also want to introduce everyone to a new fundraiser we will be starting with a company called Vertical Raise. This is an optional fundraiser that we hope both youth and high school will participate in. It is separate from the required $250 per youth player which helps to cover all of our normal equipment plus repairs/improvements to the facility. The goal of this being to raise extra money, to support purchase of new equipment for the facility. The first thing we would like to get with this particular fundraiser is a Rapsodo machine which every player in the program could benefit from. Way up on our wish list is also a giant ceiling fan to really cool the warehouse down (quality ones can run $10,000) in the summer. These are the kind of items that funds from this particular fundraiser will go towards. A separate email will be coming out explaining this but please keep an eye out and participate if you can.
Thank you for your patience as we spent the past month building new pitching tunnels, adding mats and turf, a new arm care section as well as many improvements to the organization of the facility. It is OUR home, all of ours, and we should all be so proud of it. As such, please remind your player to leave it as clean as they found it. Rules have been sent out to everyone and will be posted as well but please:
*no food, seeds or gum in facility
*only come in through the front door and the garage door should always stay shut
*clean up baseballs and and water bottles/garbage when you leave
NEW CLUBHOUSE HOURS:
Monday - Thursday 2:00pm to 9:30pm
Friday 2:00pm to 8:00pm
Saturday 8:00am to 8:30pm
Sunday 8:00am to 7:00pm
Own a business/know a business looking for a tax deduction and want to offset your fees while helping the Stars? If you get a sponsor, and they are easier to get than you think, the donation is a 50/50% split with the Stars and your player. If you have already paid in full, we can credit you back as well all the way until the start of the playing season. Please see our SPONSORS PAGE for all the information.
I am beyond energized by the direction the Stars are moving in! We have the most number of teams we have ever had and are one of the longest standing programs in Lake County. Overall we are shifting the organization to a more structured and unified approach. Our High School and Youth programs will work together to have consistent top down training at all levels. This will allow everyone to learn in a much more cooperative and productive manner and allow our players to then get the maximum benefits in their training. The whole program will be much stronger with all of this in place.
Can't wait to see our AMAZING home filled with everyone. Please say hi when you see me there and GO STARS!
Phil Carona