It's the off season, but we are keeping busy preparing for the fall season. We continue to promote our league by networking, attending events and speaking at community groups.
A key initiative for this off season is to refresh our website in time for the fall.
We were nominated for an Excellence in Action award from the Hillsborough County School District - Exceptional Student Education. We had a vendor table at the Best Buddies Friendship Walk. There was a lot of interest from the crowd about our program. Thanks to our "Super Buddies" team for participating in the walk. We attended the Temple Terrace Chamber of Commerce Student Citizenship luncheon as a sponsor.
Thanks to the Rotary Club of Temple Terrace for having me out to speak at one of their meetings. If your club or organization is ever looking for a speaker, give me a call. The more people that hear about Buddy Baseball, the better.
Did you know that we raised over $300 in Give Day Tampa Bay? Thanks to all who contributed!
Kelly is 12 years old and this is her fifth season of Buddy Baseball. Kelly loves to do the "Grandma wiggle" when she's at bat. She attends the Pepin Academies. If she had a $1000, she would buy Disney season passes. If she were famous, it would be for giving away the most hugs. Kelly would like to meet Queen Elsa from Frozen.
Buddy Spotlight - Jacob Rubin
Jacob Rubin
Jacob is 17 years old and attends Wharton High School. He is the youngest in his family and his favorite restaurant is Bonefish Grill even though his favorite food is hamburgers. Jacob's special talent or skill is his memory and his favorite musical artist is Pitbull.
Rookie Spotlight - Joshua Giple
Joshua Giple
This is Joshua's first season in Buddy Baseball. He is 14 years old and attends King High School. His favorite TV show is Sesame Street and favorite subject in school is dancing. He likes chocolate ice cream and going to McDonalds.
Coach Spotlight -
Emily Allshouse
Emily Allshouse
This is Emily's fifth season as a coach. Emily first heard about Buddy Baseball at a Temple Terrace Chamber of Commerce event. She is from Asheville NC and is a huge Duke basketball fan. She started working with Special Olympics when she was 13 and has been volunteering with various organizations ever since.
Grandparent Spotlight
Mel and Connie Kooper
Connie and Mel Kooper
Connie and Mel are Brady Kooper's grandparents. They have been married for 47 years. They have 2 children and 3 grandchildren. Connie was born in North Carolina and for 25 years worked for HCA Health Care and as Clinical Analyst. Mel was born in New York and retired 3 ½ years ago as a parts manager for a Chevrolet dealership. They enjoy playing with their grandchildren and antiquing. Both Connie and Mel volunteer at Pizzo Elementary. Twice a week Connie reads to the children with special needs and Mel volunteers five days a week in the library.
Where are they now?
Nathan Carey
Nathan was a player and a buddy on the Cyclones for 10 seasons. Nathan really enjoying playing Buddy Baseball and was super excited when he was able to finally be a buddy!
Nathan is currently a junior at Armwood High School as has been a member of JROTC for the past three years. In addition, Nathan has been working at McDonalds for the past three years.
In Nathan's spare time, he enjoys playing video games. Nathan still talks to one of his original buddies from six years ago and was grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such an amazing organization!
Sponsor Spotlight
Alvarez Roofing has been a long time sponsor for Buddy Baseball. Not only are they a great sponsor, they provide the truck and driver for our July 4th float in the Temple Terrace parade.
Best Buddies Friendship Walk
We had a lot of fun at the Best Buddies Friendship Walk. The event raised over $130,000 to fund Best Buddies programs. Best Buddies is dedicated to one-to-one friendships, leadership development, and integrated job opportunities for individuals with Intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Fall Flyers
Click on the link below to download a copy of our Fall 2017 Flyer. Registration will open in July.
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. We just received a donation from Amazon Smile for the first quarter of $43. Thanks!
