TRENTON, NJ…The Babe Ruth International Board of Directors at their annual meeting in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, unanimously elected Ruth McCullen of Pine Hill, New Jersey, into its Hall of Fame.
Babe Ruth League President/CEO Steven Tellefsen said, “Ruth has been involved with Babe Ruth Softball since the program’s inception in 1984. Under her leadership, the Middle Atlantic Region has grown in numbers to the point where it was the largest region in softball leagues and teams in 2006.”
McCullen began coaching softball for her daughters in the 1970’s when she registered them for their local town’s softball program. At the time, she was still actively playing in a women’s softball league. In 1984, she chartered the local association with the newly established Babe Ruth Softball program. In 1986, she was appointed Assistant Regional Coordinator for Softball in the Middle Atlantic Region, at which time she helped set up the region’s first 13-15 softball regional tournament. In 1989, McCullen was named Middle Atlantic Softball Regional Commissioner. The same year, she helped establish the Bi-Regional level of Babe Ruth Softball competition between the Middle Atlantic and the New England Regions. In 1991, she was appointed as Chairperson of the Babe Ruth
Softball Rules Committee and was instrumental in helping the southern portion of the country, which was “slow pitch”, to phase into “fast pitch” softball. In addition, McCullen has served as Task Force Director for several Babe Ruth Softball World Series.
Special honors include the Presidential Award for Dedicated Service to the youth of Pine Hill; induction into the Lower Camden County Regional High School’s Athletic Hall of Fame; Mayor’s Award for Outstanding Civic Contribution and Babe Ruth Softball Volunteer of the Year for the 2006.
In 2000, upon her retirement, McCullen received several awards in recognition for 23 ½ years of
Ruth McCullen joins more than 100 individuals and organizations who have earned the
distinction of being inducted into the Babe Ruth Hall of Fame.
