"Please stick to what your side is doing to make things right," Commission Chairman Tim Mason instructed parents arguing for co-sponsorship status. "Try not to say what the other side is doing wrong."

On Nov. 3, after a contentious public hearing with approximately 70 parents in attendance and more than 15 people speaking, the commission voted 5-0 to grant the Campbell Bobby Sox and Campbell Fastpitch Softball leagues co-sponsorship status within the city and have them share the softball fields and facilities at Forest Hill Elementary School.

More than 60 parents threw their support to the Campbell Girls Fastpitch. Yet not everyone was happy.

Each year, Campbell accepts applications from local sports groups for co-sponsorship status, which grants them advanced-scheduling privileges and reduced fees for use of city and Campbell Union School District athletic fields and facilities.

This year, the Campbell Bobby Sox and Campbell Girls Fastpitch Softball leagues were among the eight groups that requested such status.

City staff had recommended that the two leagues share the field, said Bobby Sox parent Marcia Baker, but doing so will not be as easy as it sounds.

"That's impossible considering the personalities involved," she said.

Baker said she is particularly concerned that the Fastpitch league, which is claiming close to 200 girls in its organization, will mean the end of recreation softball, and will lead to a more competitive style of play.

Campbell Girls Fastpitch Softball President Dave Callaway acknowledged that his league does include two seasons—summer and fall—of competitive play, but its spring season, which begins in February, is still structured as recreational softball.

Last season Bobby Sox had nearly 300 players in the league. But many of those players have pre-registered with Campbell Fastpitch this season.

The pressure to win in competitive softball isn't in keeping with the spirit of youth sports, Baker said, which is about participation, sportsmanship and the opportunity for everyone to play.

"My daughter plays Bobby Sox," she said. "And she's not the super-competitive type."

But there is an even bigger problem, writes Bobby Sox secretary Karen Gumaer in a letter to the commission.

Bobby Sox is currently suing the Fastpitch league in court, which has led to "bad blood" between the groups.

"As the commission may or may not know," she writes, "Campbell Bobby Sox is filing suit against CGFS for conversion of Bobby Sox assets and funds. Therefore, it is unlikely that these organizations could be successful in sharing fields."

The suit alleges that the Campbell Girls Fastpitch Softball, which will be starting its first recreational season in February, illegally obtained equipment and finances of more than $35,000 from Campbell Bobby Sox.

Campbell Girls Fastpitch denies the allegations. Callaway said the equipment remains where it always has been, in a shack at Forest Hill Elementary School. "If Bobby Sox wanted it, they can get a truck and come by to pick it up anytime they wanted," he said. "We have absolutely no problem with that."

As for the rest of the allegations that revolved around property and finances, Callaway said, the courts will decide if there's any merit to them.

The dispute between the groups started about a year ago, said Fastpitch trustee Dan Jordan. A former vice president of the Bobby Sox, Jordan said that while looking at that organization's bylaws, he saw that any equipment procured by the community of parents and athletes becomes "irrevocable property" of the national Bobby Sox League, which is based in Southern California.

Jordan and others thought that the rules governing asset ownership were unfair because the equipment, which was procured locally, should remain with the community that uses it. With that in mind, the former Bobby Sox trustees looked at the option of breaking off from the league and creating their own organization.

"The reason we wanted to leave Bobby Sox and form our own league is because Bobby Sox provides us with nothing, but it claims ownership of everything," Callaway said. "We thought we could do better."

Gumaer said, "The Bobby Sox rules allow each individual league to make its own financial decisions, as long as the expenditures are legitimate, documented and benefit all players fairly."

In May 2004, league parents voted 58-1 to break off from Bobby Sox and form their own softball league. The secession was only the latest in a long list of softball communities that have left Bobby Sox.

Where once the Southern California­ based organization sported 60 leagues in the state, there are now only around 15. In the immediate area, only Milpitas, Salinas and Campbell have Bobby Sox leagues.

Callaway said the vast majority of families who have signed up with Campbell Girls Fastpitch are the very same families who made up the former Bobby Sox group, so it isn't like there is a completely new group in town.

"We are the parents who coached the girls, watered the lawn, managed the teams and kept track of the fields," Callaway said.

However, Gumaer said, "Just because you get a good haul when you steal something doesn't mean it's right. Such conduct doesn't set a good example for the children in the community."

After hearing all of the arguments, Commissioner Linda Adrianos asked if the decision they would make would affect the lawsuit in any way.

Recreation and Community Services Director Claudia Cauthorn answered that the decision will have no bearing on the suit. It would simply affect whether the teams get co-sponsorship and whether or not the teams will share the same facilities at Forest Hill.

Commissioner Bruce Baker asked if it were possible to have two seasons, one for each team. But Campbell Facilities Coordinator Chris Ghioni said it wasn't possible, as each was applying for seasons in the same time period.

Campbell recreation staff recommended that they share the field, with the amount of time given to each league contingent on the number of athletes on its roster.

Commissioner Al Lowder, however, said, "It saddens me that this predicament has happened. Until we get more land for more fields, my recommendation would be to follow staff's recommendation."