Durham native cleaning up youth athletic field damaged in Chantal flooding: 'Big mess'

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- Don Daves has a long road ahead of him after floodwaters from Chantal caused serious damage to the fields operated by the Holt Athletic Association in the Old Farm neighborhood near the Eno River.

"It's a big mess," Daves said, while surveying the flood-damaged site.

The Durham native grew up playing baseball and softball at Holt Fields and later spent four decades coaching youth sports.

In his retirement, he learned that the fields he played on as a kid were up for sale and had been unused for quite some time. He and his wife spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars restoring the area three years ago.

"We came in to, you know, everything overgrown, and so we spent a summer pretty much just trying to rebuild everything and get it back in shape," Daves said.

Daves emphasized accessibility, requiring leagues to give all players game time and keeping registration fees low to ensure every family could afford to participate.

"I love the kids. I love just the smiles on their faces and the enjoyment they have," he said. "You get the winning and losing and you learn so much."

Over the weekend, heavy rain from Tropical Storm Chantal flooded homes, cars and Holt Fields. Several feet of water swept away bleachers, tore down fencing, ruined maintenance equipment and coated the entire property in mud.

SEE ALSO | How to help following disastrous flooding in central NC from Tropical Storm Chantal

"It's a very devastating thing," Daves said, standing in the muddy remains of the concession stand. "It was even more of a surprise and hurt when we found out we're not going to be covered by insurance."

Like many in the area, Daves did not have flood insurance. He's now facing a six-figure repair bill out of pocket.

Still, he and his wife remain committed to rebuilding.

"The big thing that my wife and I both said is that, you know, if we don't do this, it's just going to go back down and the kids aren't going to have a place to go," Dave said.