On Saturday May 22, 2010, twenty Kennedy Catholic students became buddies with Challenger Baseball players, in a league for youngsters and adults with developmental disabilities. In its 17th season, St Louis Challenger Baseball houses 46 teams with the goal to give everyone a chance to play. To realize that goal, Challenger has two basic rules: every player bats each inning, and every player plays the field. We don't count strikes, and we don't count outs. Everybody scores, and everybody wins.
Challenger Baseball Founder, Buck Smith wrote "Many of our players would not be able to play without their buddies, and your players and students made the game possible for them. Some of our players have more challenges than others, and the Kennedy students took everything in stride and made it a great day. Thanks to your players and students, we were able to give a buddy to every player who needed one. In 17 years, those days have been few. And sometimes that makes the difference between a player not having a lot of fun and questioning another game, or a player who can't wait to play again and who will play for years and years. On behalf of our players and their families and friends, we can't thank you enough."
Challenger Baseball participants learn not only the fundamentals of baseball, but also experience pulling together as a team, being cheered on by a crowd, and encouraged by their peers. All players are named all-stars, and all receive trophies at the end-of-the-season picnic. For more information on St. Louis Challenger Baseball visit www.challengerbaseball.org.
