7/6/2010 11:20:22 AM
The devastating Flood of 2008 chased thousands of people out of their homes in Cedar Rapids (Iowa) and chased kids away from parks all over town, but a special new youth baseball program has grown out of that soggy mess. It’s called the League of Dreams, and it’s giving 76 boys and girls a chance to play ball this summer for free, thanks to the generosity of many fine organizations.
Minor League Baseball™, the Cedar Rapids Kernels, Perfect Game USA, the Rawlings Sporting Goods company, the Baseball Tomorrow Fund and the Cedar Rapids Parks & Recreation Department have joined forces to sponsor this new program at Jones Park in southwest Cedar Rapids. All of the kids attend five grade schools that were severely affected by the flood, which submerged homes, businesses and fields alike. All of the students were 2nd and 3rd graders at Taylor, Wilson, Harrison, Van Buren and Cleveland schools in Cedar Rapids this past year.
“When the floods of 2008 struck Cedar Rapids and several other MiLB clubs in Iowa, we were fortunate to be able to call on the entire Minor League Baseball Community to help aid the four member cities struck the hardest (Cedar Rapids, Burlington, Davenport and Des Moines),” said John Cook, the Senior Vice President for Business Operations for Minor League Baseball. “Through MiLB Charities, $25,000 donations were made to each community to aid in their respective relief efforts. Additionally, our goal was to aid the Cedar Rapids community in establishing opportunities for youth to get back on the baseball diamond and to set up playing opportunities as soon as possible.
“The effort and fundraising for this project in the Cedar Rapids area, along with a grant from the Baseball Tomorrow Fund, made this vision a reality,” said Cook. “With the help of MiLB vendors, MiLB Charities was able to provide uniforms for the youths in the Cedar Rapids League of Dreams.”
Minor League Baseball supplied the shirts and caps for all the players and coaches. The shirts and caps are colorful, authentic items you’d see for sale at Minor League parks across the country, carrying the logos and insignias of Minor League teams. The kids in the League of Dreams wear them proudly.
Rawlings generously donated baseball pants, gloves, bats and batting helmets, giving the kids brand-new, top-of-the-line equipment for the league.
“Rawlings is delighted to help with the new youth baseball program in Cedar Rapids,” said Mark Kraemer, the Sports Marketing and Licensing Manager at Rawlings. “We know the city was severely hurt by the Flood of 2008, so we’re happy to pitch in and help those families and their children. We hope the kids enjoy the new bats, gloves, helmets and pants. We wish everyone the best.”
The League of Dreams is an outgrowth of the Jones Park Baseball Project, which was announced in the Fall of 2009 as a response to the flood. The Jones Park Project was formed to upgrade the number and quality of fields in Cedar Rapids. When the project is completed later this year, there will be one brand-new field and two refurbished fields in the park, part of an overall $170,000 project.
Perfect Game USA, the largest scouting report service for amateur baseball in the world, is headquartered in Cedar Rapids and has a rich tradition of supporting baseball programs in the area. The company took a leadership role in the new League of Dreams and has supplied the coaches, equipment bags, baseballs and other items for the league.
“Perfect Game is happy to help with this new youth baseball program in Cedar Rapids,” said Perfect Game president Jerry Ford, who grew up in Cedar Rapids and played on city fields as a kid. “We support all baseball activities in our community, and this is a tremendous opportunity to give these 76 boys and girls a chance to play ball this summer and have some fun.
“There are many great values to be learned on a baseball field, whether they become great players or not,” said Ford. “We hope these kids learn to love the game, just like we do, and we also hope they grow into baseball fans of the future. We need to keep creating fans, and there’s no better place to start than with young boys and girls. We’d like to thank our partners with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, Minor League Baseball, the Baseball Tomorrow Fund, the Rawlings Sporting Goods company and the City of Cedar Rapids.”
The Kernels, a Class A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels in the Class A Midwest League, played a pivotal role in putting the league together. The Kernels will host a special ceremony for the League of Dreams on July 1 and also will host a special game and free picnic for all the players and their families on July 27, thanks to the Kernels Foundation.
“This is exactly why the Kernels Foundation exists,” said Jack Roeder, the General Manager of the ballclub. “We are privileged to give back to our dynamic community and the wonderful people who live here. Supporting this project will see results for years to come.”