Buddy Baseball Newsletter
December 2017
Hello Buddy Baseball Fans, 
 
2017 has been an awesome year for Buddy Baseball. The highlight of the year was the approval and funding to build two synthetic rubber baseball fields on the soccer field adjacent to the parking lot.  We were also featured on several local morning news programs.  The success of our league is the result of our fantastic buddies, coaches, volunteers and sponsors. 
 
What a great time we had at our end of season party at Pin Chasers.  We had 250 people in attendance.  Thanks to Lois and Sam Douglas for collecting restaurant gift cards for our raffle.
 
We have been invited to be on Fox 13's Good Day Tampa Bay - Charley's World on Wednesday, January 3rd.  We will be playing a game and Charley Belcher will be out to feature us. Let me know if you are interested in playing.  You will need to be at the fields by 7:00 a.m. 
 
Have a great holiday season and we will see you in the spring! 

Russ Oberbroeckling
Executive Director


We're on TV!
News Channel 8 -
News Channel 8 - "Daytime" interview

Thanks to News Channel 8 - "Daytime" for having us on to promote the upcoming season.  Carlos Hernandez on the Ravens and his mom, Leslie, were outstanding.  Click on the video to view the interview.
Registration is Open
Our next season will start on 2/17/2018 and end on 4/7/2018. The Meet and Greet will be on Saturday 2/10/2018. The registration deadline is Friday 1/5/2017 at 5:00pm. This season we are looking for parent volunteers to help the coaches on an as needed basis.
 
Here is the link to register.

Player Spotlight - Andrew Garrett
Andrew Garrett
Andrew is 21 and lives in Orlando, about an hour north of Disney World.  He lived in Tampa five years ago and has been with Buddy Baseball since it started.  Andrew likes going to New Smyrna Raceway, swimming, video, Wii, iPad games and bike riding. He is in a job training program and likes working at Publix the best, pulling things forward on the shelves.  If he was famous it would be for his Hot Wheels collection.  He has over 4000 cars!
Buddy Spotlight - Luna Viola
Luna Viola
Luna attends Morning Star school and is 15 years old.  Luna has been a buddy since she was 10 years old.  She is fluent in sign language and her favorite musical artist is Carrie Underwood.  Other than knowing sign language her special talent is singing.  Luna's favorite restaurant is Burger 21, but her favorite food is pizza.

Rookie Spotlight - Enrique Trevino
Buddy Enrique Trevino
Enrique plays baseball at Wiregrass Ranch and is 17 years old.  His family calls him "Rique" and he has a brother and a sister.  Enrique watches a lot of baseball and his favorite team is the Chicago Cubs. If he had $1000, he would buy 1000 McChickens.  His favorite subject in school is Math and according to Enrique, the best thing about summer is no school.
Coach  Spotlight -  Toshi Newkirt
Toshi Newkirt
This is Toshi's third season coaching the Cobras. She began coaching after her daughter Destiny's first impactful season as a buddy.  She also volunteers at the Meet and Greet.  Toshi has the number 78 on her jersey in memory of my father. He died of cancer on December 24, 2015 but in his 78 years he made a huge difference in people's lives. He always supported Toshi and she enjoys supporting Buddy Baseball. 
 
Toshi is from Millen Ga. Married to Curtis Jr. They have two children, Destiny and Curtis III. Destiny volunteers as a buddy. Her husband and son assist with the team as well. Toshi has worked at Bank of America as a GWIM Senior Operations Analyst for 18 years. Her favorite team is the Cobras. They are a big happy family. She enjoys spending time with family and assisting others in any way that she can.

Where are they now?
Lindsey Danner

Lindsey was a long time player on the Ravens with her buddy Patricia Guthman.
She is in her second and final year in the STAGES program at USF. Lindsey continues to work at Chick-fil-A in New Tampa three nights a week and volunteers at her church preschool on Sunday mornings. She has recently become an official ambassador for Best Buddies, which gave her the opportunity to speak in front of over 500 people at their recent gala. Lindsey is also part of the inspiration and advocacy team for Gigi's Playhouse, a new achievement center in Tampa that provides services to kids with Down Syndrome. This has kept her busy with various events and fundraisers. She continues to do competitive cheerleading, and enjoys bowling, Young Life, and JOYS activities. 
Sponsor Spotlight
Gaspar's Patio Bar & Grille

Gaspar's has been a sponsor for five years.  A local Temple Terrace business, family owned and operated since 1960.  Gaspar's won the Temple Terrace Chamber of Commerce's Business of the Year in 2012.  They have great food, live music, karaoke and huge game room.  We have our "Appreciation Night" every season at Gaspar's.  Thanks for your support!  

Amazon Smile
Amazon Smile
When shopping on line. Consider using Amazon Smile. A portion of the the sale will be donated back to Buddy Baseball, no extra cost to you. Just use  https://smile.amazon.com/  selecting Buddy Baseball as the organization that you are supporting the next time you are shopping on Amazon. Thanks.

Contact Us
(813) 416-5742
Until next time...   PLAY BALL!!

Russ Oberbroeckling
Executive Director
In This Issue
Upcoming Issues
Spotlights
Fox 13 Ball Game
Meet and Greet

Buddy Baseball | (813) 416-5742 | Russ@Buddybaseball.org | http://www.buddybaseball.org
P.O. Box 290361
Temple Terrace, FL 33687-0361

501(c)(3) non profit organization