Freddie Willard has been with the Beaumont Convention and Visitors Bureau for almost 20 years. She has been instrumental in bringing visitors to Beaumont and dollars into our community. Freddie thanked us for the opportunity to address the club. She said she would give us some updates on CVB activities and that she would have a couple of asks, as well. Freddie said that the Convention & Visitors Bureau is a destination organization dedicated to doing three things – assisting with destination development, advertising and promoting our city and area, and doing group sales and attracting group business. In doing those three things, the CVB helps stimulate the local economy and improve the quality of life in our city. She speaks to groups all over and works to bring them to Beaumont by hosting their conventions, shows, tournaments, etc. When you drive past Ford Park and see the baseball and softball fields full of players, that is the work of the CVB Group Sales. And all those players and their families are staying in local hotels and eating in local restaurants. The CVB Tourism Department advertises food, fun, and festivals – they promote all upcoming events. The Community Development Department is busy working on the Tyrrell Park improvements – and there will be announcements on those coming soon!

All those departments working together to bring the conventions, tournaments, reunions, and meetings to Beaumont mean big business for our city. In 2019 the CVB helped bring in almost 20,000 visitors and $31.3 million in revenue to Beaumont. Freddie’s first ask was that Rotarians contact the CVB with information on groups and meetings that they could help bring to Beaumont. She asked us to help the CVB learn more about associations that they could attract here for their meetings.

Freddie then spoke to us about a recent win for the CVB. In July 2022, Beaumont will be host to the World Series of the National Beep Baseball Association. Beep baseball is a game for the visually impaired. The players play by sound instead of sight. The ball has a speaker inside that beeps when activated (hence the name). There are only two bases in beep baseball, placed approximately where we would normally see first and third base. Instead of a base, it is a padded column. When a batter hits the beeping ball, one of the bases is activated with a buzzer and the batter runs to that base. To be safe, the batter has to reach the base and hug the column before a fielder is able to get to the ball and hold it up. If the batter makes it first, that is scored as a run. The bases are 100 feet from home plate, so it’s not a short run. The pitcher and catcher are both sighted. They are on the same team as the batter, and the pitcher’s job is to throw the ball in the perfect spot for the batter to hit it. The game does get very competitive with players running full speed and diving to stop balls. The lack of sight does not deter the players from going all out.

To properly host this event, Freddie told us they will need about 100 volunteers a day. The jobs will range from assistance on the field to helping at a doggie daycare for participants’ pets. Freddie asked us to plan to show up and help make Beaumont the best host for a World Series that Beep Baseball has ever had!