Miracle Makers
Children inspire me. From the soft velvet of a newborn's head, to the high-pitched squeals of laughter from an eight-year-old, to the rare spontaneous hugs from a teenager – children inspire me. They just exude all the good things about life. Of course, for the first couple of years they exude other, not-so-pleasant things, too.
But mostly children are chock-full of miracles. That's right, I think they're miniature miracle makers.
There's that wondrous miracle of getting more than three consecutive hours of sleep the first time your new baby sleeps through the night. Or the ever-elusive, spill-free family meal at a favorite restaurant (“favorite” meaning you haven't been banned from it, yet). Or that miracle when a teenager's bedroom floor reappears spontaneously (i.e. when you haven't nagged him for a week to clean his room).
The other day my 16-year-old floored me by saying our house was better decorated than any TV designer could do (Granted, he was watching Hilde on Trading Spaces . . .). But still this was a miracle of a compliment coming from the boy who thinks I can't match my shirt to my pants. Yep, that was definitely a miracle.
Tulare County is blessed to have a place that recognizes the miracle in all children. Of course I'm talking about the Miracle League. A place built by generous people with the vision of lessening the challenges of some very special children. At least for an hour or two a week, when they can squeal with laughter as they play the all-American game of baseball.
The Miracle League will hold its annual benefit dinner and auction on Thursday, May 15. And on May 16 they're hosting a very special exhibition game on the Miracle League's newest field, a full-sized grass softball diamond.
That's where we'll have the opportunity to see the 2008 Women's USA Olympic Softball Team perform their own magic in a special exhibition game. They're making time to stop off in Visalia as they tour the country before heading to China to compete in the Summer Olympics.
“I believe this will be our finest event ever,” said Gary Geiger, of the Miracle League. “It is unbelievable to me that we were able to attract the Olympic team to Visalia.”
The opposing team of the American Softball Association All-Stars will be joined by five local athletes. The young ladies chosen to represent their school are: Ashley Garcia, Redwood, Lauren Blair, Golden West, Kristen Alburn, El Diamante, Raquel Garcia, Mt. Whitney and Kristina Borges, CVC.
These athletes were chosen based on recommendations from the high schools' athletic directors and essays submitted to the Miracle League board.
Gary said that the lucky girls will “get to play against the rock stars of their sport,” and “be struck out by one of the best pitchers on the planet!”
Miracle Leagers, themselves, get in on the action the day of the big game, too. They will be playing in a one-half inning Miracle League game with some pinch-hitting buddies with Olympic-sized hearts.
The cost for seeing the game is $20 general admission and $30 for VIP seating. Tickets are available by calling 635-1478 or by going by the Press Boxx, 3525 W. Walnut Ave., Visalia.
The benefit dinner the night before, promises to be every bit as inspiring as in years past. Steve Garvey, the famous former first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, will be this year's emcee. And of course both the silent auction and the live auction (including a Hannah Montana/Miley Sirus signed a guitar) will be part of the program. Tickets are $125 each, or a table of 10 for $2,000, which includes two VIP passes. Or there's a $5,000 per table package, which includes 10 VIP passes, tickets to the exhibition game, and an Olympian seated at your table.
Better hurry on that one – there are only 18 members of the team!
VIP'ers get meet and greet access beginning at 5 p.m. The doors open to everyone else at 6:30 p.m. The dinner is at 7 p.m. with the program following. The benefit will be at Visalia First Assembly of God Church 3737 S. Akers St., in Visalia, right next to the Miracle League Fields.
Over the last six years the Miracle League has
gotten pretty good at inspiring generous people with the inspiring kids on
their teams. So far they've raised over $1,000,000 in miracles and built not
one, but two fields of dreams.
In addition to the grass field where the exhibition game will be played there
is the original field with its handicapped accessible playing surface.
In a Miracle League game, each team member gets a hit and scores a run every inning. And they get a buddy to help them out. The league plays in both the spring and fall. The current Miracle League season is under way and they're playing games each Saturday, you can check out the times at www.visaliamiracleleague.com.
Stop by and catch a game if you get the chance. You'll find that their field of dreams is just chock-full of miracles.
Send comments to RoniSMiller@yahoo.com
The above stories are the property of
The Valley Voice Newspaper and may not be reprinted without explicit permission
in writing from the publisher.
