HELP THE KIDS PLAY

Hi Guys,

The following article was written by Doug Dwyer and I was asked to post it on this blog. Please take the time to read it... Thanks, James.

HELP THE KIDS PLAY

The easiest way to get lost in the shuffle is to allow yourself to be lost in the shuffle. The world is a busy place and we meet each day with many urgent and often conflicting priorities. For many people, there is the struggle between “do we work to live or; do we live to work”. We need to work to sustain ourselves and our families, but is our work so all encompassing that we miss out in spending time with the very people we are trying to support? It’s just one of life’s daily complexities.

Now add to that, job loss, overwhelming bills, unexpected expenses, cut back hours, a roller coaster economy or general anxiety over making ends meet. Imagine sitting down with your son or daughter and saying, “I’m sorry, but we just can’t afford to do swimming lessons this year” or “we’ll look at what we can do about hockey next season”. These are real situations and conversations that too many parents face.

These problems are not unique to our town or region. It would be very easy to allow this to be one of those lost in the shuffle moments and deem the situation to be too vast to tackle. You could be lost in the shuffle; or, you could be Ed Hopkins and pledge to make a difference.

As Ed describes it, the genesis of his idea was less ‘lightning bolt’ and more ‘dimmer switch working its way to the high setting’. Ed’s idea to help those in needs started with a relatively off the cuff conversation with Larry Turner in November of 2006. As Ed recalled the chat he said “we all enjoy playing ball in Tottenham, maybe we should donate money to kids where their parents are not financially able have them play”. It was just a simple statement and Larry replied, "Good idea, maybe we should do that". In the coming weeks, conversations around that simple idea morphed into planning sessions which turned into strategy meetings with family and close friends which quickly brought Ed to the precipice of diving in with both feet; or slowly moving back from the edge of the cliff.

Ed describes it this way, “some time had gone by and nothing of substance had really happened. A month later my son was visiting from Memphis and we talked about it over dinner and after hearing about this great idea and that his dad was not moving to make it happened, he reach in his pocket, pulled out $100.00 US and without saying it out loud, he laid down the challenge to get this off the ground. I have never been known to back down from any challenge my son throws at me so I resolved on that night to make it happen. With lots of help it has turn out to be a great success.”

In very short order, the Help The Kids Play (HTKP) program has become a smash success and there is great pride in the 168 members of the Tottenham Oldtimers Slow Pitch League because one of their own made this happen!

In 2007 HTKP was able spend $2000.00 and contribute to nine (9) children playing in sports that they would have otherwise missed out on. It was a great start! From that beginning to today, the HTKP program has raised in excess of $15,000.00 and helped 73 children participate in local sports! That is making a difference on a significant scale.

While there has been organization and leadership around this program, it is a true grass-roots initiative. There are private donations that are accepted, but no less than 85% of the total financial contribution comes from an annual baseball tournament held in Tottenham at Coventry Park. That weekend of activities has grown over the years much like the program has. This year (July 9th-11th) will see an oldtimers mens division, a young timers division and a ladies division. Additionally, there will be an “all star” game between the young timers and old timers and alumni game featuring past members of the old timers league and home running hitting contest.

But those are just the scheduled events. This doesn’t speak to the weekend of family fun spent at the park, the kids playing, the food, and the camaraderie. As the profile and awareness of the event has grown, more and more people have invited friends from elsewhere to play in the tournament. The theory being that “if my participation can help a child, then bringing others will only help more”.

When asked why he participates in the weekend tournament, Kevin Boston, Treasure of the Tottenham Oldtimer’s League said, “it’s a worthy cause for the long-term development of our community. Raising money to help children play sports within the community is important to the social and physical well-being of those individuals.”

The needs of children are something that should be and is at the forefront of the thoughts of many recreational ballplayers and that is a major reason why the participation rate is as strong as it is. Being on the ground floor as a participant in the weekend as well as financial contributor through entry fees and food and beverage sales, makes everyone keenly aware of those that may need assistance. The, ‘that’s too bad’ mentality quickly changes into a ‘how can I help’ mindset. Chris Ross, President of the Tottenham Oldtimer League offered this insight, “"The Help The Kids Play program has inspired me to reach out to families that I think could benefit from this initiative.” The view is from a different lens. A lens that now offers a way to overcome challenges that prevent children from partaking in what should be a right of all youth. Sports.

While this is a very real feel-good community endeavour, the participants give willingly of their time and money knowing full well that they will never know the beneficiaries of the program. The program itself is run with strictest of privacy for the sake of anonymity of applicants. Only one committee will ever know the name of the applicant. The approved contribution from HTKP can cover any or all of enrolment, equipment or other sports related expenses.

The link to this year’s HTKP tournament is www.tottenhamoldtimers.ca/HTKP.html

Please visit the site. Please enter a team if you can. Please join an existing entry if you cannot get enough people together to form a complete team. If you are unable to play for whatever reason, bring your kids for a hot dog and watch the alumni game. Have a cold drink and watch the all star game. Bring a friend and see the Ladies, Men’s or Young men’s finals.

Become a vital contributor to an exceptionally worthy cause. Enjoy your role in making your community a better place. Don’t allow yourself to be lost in the shuffle.