Bench at baseball diamond unveiled in memory of Jackson Sparks

 

MUKWONAGO, Wis. -- A special ceremony on Thursday, June 16 honored 8-year-old Jackson Sparks.

Sparks was one of six people struck and killed by a car in the Waukesha Christmas Parade attack on November 21, 2021.

Jackson, an avid baseball lover, was walking with his baseball team at the time of the attack.

Now, his memory is being kept alive at a baseball field in Mukwonago with a bench dedicated to him.

The Jackson Sparks Memorial Bench is a gift from the Mukwonago Lions Club.

It now lives at the Field Park baseball diamond, a nod to Jackson's favorite sport.

Jacksons mother, father and brother attended the unveiling ceremony Thursday.

The gray bench sits by itself on a slab of concrete - a permanent fixture of Field Park.

The bench reads, "In Memory of Jackson Sparks", and features a seal with his baseball number, 23.

The Mukwonago Lions Club regularly does community fundraisers and projects. They believed this would be a perfect way to honor the life of a local boy who loved baseball.

“I hope since we can’t have him running around the bases like he should be, I hope when they come here and sit on the bench, they can think of him and all the other kids that come here and get a great outlet and a game of baseball," said Chris Standlee, the president of the Lions Club.

Jackson’s spirit was also commemorated Thursday, as his brother, Tucker Sparks, threw the first pitch for the start of the Mukwonago summer little league baseball tournament.