Growlers Intern Stepped Up Big Time
This has the probability of happening less than 1%.
We have three people who can perform inside of the Porter mascot suit on a given day.
Unfortunately, all three were not available on a gameday. So our Intern, Ryan, volunteered to be Porter for the day and CRUSHED it
A fan survey even said that this was the best Porter interaction with their kid. Incredible stuff.
Ryan didn't have to dress up as Porter but he did AND he did a phenomenal job. Kudos to Ryan the Intern.
Have You Said Hi to Kelsey Yet?
Kelsey Degenfelder is a Western Michigan University student and a Kalamazoo local. She is double majoring in Marketing and Sports Management
As a member of the Biggby Energy Crew, Kelsey keeps the energy high between innings.
When she's not hyping up the crowd, you can also catch her side by side with our mascot Porter.
One of her favorite moments from the season so far has been getting to dress up as different characters to entertain the crowd.
Keep a look out for Kelsey at our next home game. You can spot her in her orange and white Biggby shirt.
We Moved the Kub Zone & Here’s Why...
We read every fan survey and there were a handful of parents who suggested the Kalsee Credit Union Kub Zone was in a tough spot.
We took those to heart and created a brand new area for the kids to enjoy.
In the offseason, we excavated some land behind the stadium, rolled some nice turf on it and fully fenced it in.
A Wedding During a Game?!
What a moment Local couple, Alex & Rachel renewed their vows as husband and wife at the Growlers game.
They've been married for 6 years but they couldn't afford a wedding reception.
So we invited them out to have a special day with 3,000+ fans cheering them on.
Over 100 local couples submitted why they should be selected for the pre-game ceremony last Spring when Swiftie Night: Wedding Edition was announced
How We Help Local Little Leagues...
This was awesome, the Gull Lake Little League youth baseball & softball players & parents had a pre-game parade at Honor Credit Union Stadium.
Gull Lake Little League got new reversible jerseys (formerly one color t-shirts) this year with our help.
We are able to get all youth players a reversible jersey + hat + a complimentary Growlers ticket for youth GLLL baseball/softball players.
We help other little league teams in the greater-Kalamazoo area with the same process (Paw Paw, West Portage, South Portage just to name a few).
We encourage parents & organizers to reach out, we'd love to help you save money on jerseys + hats & include tickets for the entire team.
Did You See Coach Drake
in the
Sky?
We hosted three postgame drone shows from June 11-13.
Our drone show featured 25 images - one of them being a nod to our viral 6-year-old-coach, Coach Drake.
Coach Drake is forever a Growler & forever a viral piece of Growlers baseball history.
The show was 12+ minutes, featured 200 drones and creates a massive visual display over the stadium.
The show was perfectly synced to music and designed to tell the story of the Growlers, the city of Kalamazoo, and the state of Michigan.
We Had to Change the Team Store...
We made some changes to our Team Store presented by The Spirit Shoppe in the offseason - we turned it into more of a shopping plaza.
The new check-out location was previously a concession stand for sweets & snacks.
This new location provides ample space for the checkout line (was previously inside of the store).
There is also a tent that allows our team to have more inventory in the plaza that previously couldn't be displayed.
There are hats located both in-store & behind the check-out location now.
What do you think about these improvements to the Team Store?
The Newly Installed Netting is...
You can hardly see the newly-installed netting on these crystal-clear images because it's 95% see through.
The City of Kalamazoo, installed safety netting (similar to what the Detroit Tigers installed in 2018) at Honor Credit Union Stadium.
Foul balls can have exit velocities anywhere between 95mph-105mph leaving a fan that is 60 feet away .4 seconds to react (average human eye blink is .1-.4 seconds)
Without netting, these impacts frequently cause concussions, facial fractures, dental trauma, and permanent eye injuries.
We extended the lease of the stadium through the 2038 season and continue to make renovations. What suggestions do you have?
These Seats Stay Dry Unlike Previously
This proof of concept - the new seats are NOT wet even after a couple of days of rain in the greater-Kalamazoo area.
The newly installed seats automatically fold up when not in use, so rainwater doesn't pool on the bottom like the old ones.
The new seats are the same width & the number of seats per row did not change (we are NOT making fans squeeze into smaller seats to sell more tickets).
The old seats also got extremely hot, were always dirty/wet, were hard to maintain, and were uncomfortable, according to fan surveys.
We worked with a local company, Interkal, to pick these seats and get them installed before our Opening Day on May 25.
N/A Beers Debut at Growlers Games...
New at Growlers games in 2026 is non-alcoholic beers.
Fan surveys suggested that we were lacking in the N/A options for fans outside of waters, sodas and lemonades.
So we worked with Athletic Brewing to get a few different N/A flavors in the stadium this summer.
Fans can find these at any of the beer outlets inside of the stadium.
We can even serve them in the fan-favorite Bear Bev containers - just ask a bartender about it
We’re In Front of Fans All the Time...
At our front office, we pride ourselves on being hands-on and personable with fans.
During games, you won't find us hiding in an air-conditioned office or on the top row of the dugout.
We're out on the concourse, perfecting the fan experience, solving problems, and connecting with you.
We have 14 full-time employees and our office is continuing to grow. There are 80+ seasons of combined experience in the Northwoods League in our front office.
And we take pride in being local - 9 front office members attended a Michigan higher-education school before coming to the Growlers (ex. Western Michigan University, Ferris State, Davenport, Grand Valley, Kalamazoo College).
If you ever have questions about the fan experience, we encourage you to ask a teammate. We'd be happy to help
Security at the Stadium is New...
New in 2026 is stadium security at Honor Credit Union Stadium - Adams Risk Management Group is in attendance of every Growlers home game.
They are staffed by 100% active and retired public safety personnel from the greater-Kalamazoo area.
They deliver elite armed security and patrol services at home games and other locations throughout Southwest Michigan.
They are respected by every law enforcement and publicsafety agency in Kalamazoo County as they operate with integrity, accountability, and professionalism.
Adams Risk Management Group’s Owner also sits on the board of directors for the Michigan Council of Professional Investigators.
Thank you to these individuals for helping us keep Honor Credit Union Stadium a safe place for families, friends and companies.
Thank You for Your Service, Eric Russell
Eric Russell served as a Marine in the mid 90's and was honorably discharged from injuries he sustained while on duty (multiple back surgeries & bilateral surgeries).
In 2003, he was diagnosed with kidney failure and spent years on dialysis while continuing to work full-time and care for his family.
He received a life-saving kidney transplant in 2008, but in 2024 his kidney failed again, forcing him back onto dialysis.
In February 2026, he received another kidney transplant — his third chance at life.
Through it all, he has remained strong, selfless, and dedicated to his family. He is truly a Marine and kidney warrior.
Interkal purchased 4 tickets to EVERY single Growlers home game this season, reserved exclusively for local active-duty military and U.S. veterans.
Thank you Eric for your service to our country & thank you Interkal for providing the experience for 36 local veterans this year .
They Had to Borrow Our Helmets...
You don't see this every day. Our opponents, the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters, accidentally left their helmets back home.
We had a few extra helmets lying around so we let the team borrow the extra helmets.
It's a big (and unnecessary) expense for a summer college team to ship helmets to Kalamazoo overnight so the Rapids Rafters will use our helmets tomorrow also.
They must've had some extra magic left in them because they scored 7 runs in them.
This isn't something you see every day, but we're happy to help accommodate our friends.
Coach Drake Has Grown Up...
This is awesome. Our 'Coach Drake' promotion went viral over 7 years ago.
Today, 'Coach Drake' is one of 3,000 local kids attending the Growlers Education Days.
His image of him throwing a base and getting ejected is sitting on the Honor Credit Union 'Wall of Honor' where he will forever be recognized.
We had to get an updated picture to show you what 13-year old Coach Drake looks like today.
Welcome back, Coach Drake. Forever a Growler. Forever a viral piece of Growlers baseball history.
How We Recycle Cardboard Locally...
We added 2 of these cardboard & paper recycling containers to Honor Credit Union Stadium.
Clark Logic picks up both 7-yard containers from the stadium every week and begins their recycling process immediately.
Cans and bottles are the top-of-mind recycling items - but our team has already recycled roughly 6 tons of cardboard this season.
That is 6 tons of paper products, including the cardboard cases from beer packages, the cardboard boxes that utensils are distributed in and everything in between.
This relationship with Clark Logic helped us find an environmentally-friendly way to reduce the waste of the majority of cardboard that is used by the concessions team.
This is a Feel Good Story
This is a feel good story Wyatt is an Operations Intern for our team this summer as he learns the behind-the-scenes knowledge of working in sports.
But in his spare time, he volunteers as a baseball coach for the local Kalamazoo Christian High School Baseball team.
His team ended up taking 2nd place in the state tournament this year and had an impressive 27-8 record.
Wyatt is a local student from Mattawan and previously attended Kalamazoo Christian High School as a student.
Wyatt may have missed a few days of work during his internship but it was for a great cause and his work impacted local kids.
Congratulations to Kalamazoo Christian on an amazing baseball season and shoutout to our intern, Wyatt, for using fun to make a difference in the lives of others. We love this culture.
