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Cloverdale’s Challenger baseball program looking for volunteers

Baseball buddies needed for kids to play ball
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Jeff Sandes, the division coordinator for Cloverdale’s Challenger baseball, is seen with Justin Dhaliwal, a Challenger baseball player. Sandes says with Challenger starting again April 16, the program is looking for volunteers, or baseball buddies. (Photo submitted: Jeff Sandes)

Challenger baseball is back and the program is in need of volunteers.

The season starts April 16 and Jeff Sandes, the division coordinator for Challenger, is holding a couple of orientation days April 14-15 for volunteers, or “baseball buddies.”

The buddies are needed in the Challenger division as all the players have special needs. Each player is assigned a buddy and each player needs a buddy in order to play.

“Everyone that’s volunteered to be a buddy has instantly found a connection with their assigned player,” said Sandes. “When people watch from the other side of the fence, they see these kids having fun, and they’re very supportive, but when they come onto the actual field, and they get their hands dirty with this program, that’s when they see the difference they make in the lives of these people.”

It’s not just the players who benefit, but the whole family, Sandes explained. He said a lot of the buddies end up becoming friends with the players and they develop a bond that is mutually beneficial.

“It changes the lives of both the volunteer and player,” Sandes added. “Now (the buddy) gave that player a permanent friend. And in the special needs community, that’s one of the hardest things to do, to find companions and friends that the kids can actually connect with.”

He said when a volunteer partners with a player in Challenger, the baseball buddy makes more of a difference than they can ever imagine.

“Outside of this game, a lot of them don’t have an opportunity to just be a normal kid with somebody that they look up to,” he said. “It’s the parents that primarily have to provide them with their entertainment and activities, so Challenger offers them an opportunity to do something with other people.”

Sandes is currently recruiting new players for Challenger and reaching out to all the players from last year to make sure everyone is signed up ahead of the April 16 Opening Day.

In terms of volunteering, he noted the program is great for teenagers as the volunteer hours they earn as buddies through the programs also count toward scholarship opportunities.

That’s because the Challenger program is backed by the Rogers Media charity Jays Care Foundation. The foundation is a big supporter of Challenger Baseball.

“Challenger Baseball is Jays Care’s adaptive baseball program, run in partnership with Little League Canada and Baseball Canada, specifically designed to empower children, youth and adults living with physical and/or cognitive disabilities,” says a post on the foundation’s website. “The program teaches athletes living with disabilities the core life skills inherent to baseball, including: teamwork, communication, determination, resiliecy, inclusion, support and courage.”

Sandes said more than a dozen buddies from the Cloverdale program have gone on to win $10,000 scholarships from the Jays Care Foundation after volunteering with Challenger.

“The teenagers make such a connection with the kids,” added Sandes. “Virtually everyone has a cognitive disability, so the connection is so valuable.

“In a lot of the cases, the parents are with their kids 24 hours a day,” he explained. “So it’s nice that on a Sunday, they can come out for an hour and just watch their kids having fun, playing an able-bodied sport, but under the boundaries of what their abilities can handle.”

Sandes said parents really enjoy witnessing their kids play and interact with their buddies.

“There’s nothing but laughter and smiles and connection happening with their kids,” he added. “They get to watch that instead of them having to facilitate it. It has such an impact on the community. It’ really hard to convey.”

Challenger baseball runs Sundays at 1 p.m. at Cloverdale Ball Park.

To register for Challenger, or to find out more info, visit cloverdalebaseball.com/program-info/challenger/.

To register as a baseball buddy, or for more info on becoming a buddy, call Sandes at 778-708-0196 or email him at jeffsandes@shaw.ca.



editor@cloverdalereporter.com

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Malin Jordan

About the Author: Malin Jordan

Malin is the editor of the Cloverdale Reporter.
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