Wayne Gomes Youth Baseball Diversity Foundation
Dedication of
Sandra Pickin Memorial Baseball Park
May 8, 2010
The Wayne Gomes Youth Baseball Diversity Foundation has completed a major project on its agenda. With the generous help of others, we have built a regulation baseball field for at-risk youngsters. The field was begun in 2009 by founder Wayne Gomes, with its primary purpose being to serve the Foundation’s Hampton RBI program – thus giving local young people a safe, inviting place to play baseball.
On May 8, 2010, the field was officially dedicated. Mr. Gomes wanted a namesake for the park that would personify the values that his organization stood for: selflessness, commitment, character, and steadfastness. He knew the perfect individual for this: the late Sandra Pickin. Ms. Pickin had devoted her life to serving the community, and a powerful tool in her toolbox was the medium of sports. She was a fixture in both the sports community and the charity community.
The field owes its completion in large measure to the generosity of the Baseball Tomorrow Fund and the national RBI program (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities). The City of Hampton also played a significant role in making the baseball field possible. And of course it could not have been completed without the generous help of untold individuals and local businesses – each of whom contributed in their own way. We offer our deepest gratitude to all of them. Together, we started with the notion that anything is possible, and we proved ourselves right.
The Wayne Gomes Youth Baseball Diversity Foundation is grateful to have completed this impressive new baseball field. But that is only half the job. The RBI program serves kids as young as 6; and as a 6-year-old cannot wear the uniform of a 15-year-old, so he or she cannot play on a field built for mature players. Thus, the Foundation has begun a field designed specifically for its younger players. We call it our “Field of Dreams.” We believe that “if you build it, they will come.” And it’s particularly important that the 6-12 group do come … any outreach-program manager knows that the sooner at-risk youth are brought in, the greater the chance of successfully setting them on the right path. So the “Field of Dreams” project is a pressing and urgent one for WGYBDF.
At present, the field consists of stakes in the ground marking the bases and other key components. But the Foundation is confident it can bring this field to life just as it did Pickin Park. Help from the community is critical, however. The City of Hampton was good enough to make the plot available, and it is up to the rest of us to make this contribution bear fruit. There are many ways to help – gifts of money, volunteer time, and in-kind goods and services. And there is a sponsorship program that can bring valuable visibility and exposure to businesses and organizations wanting to help. The full story is laid out in the link below marked “Click here to download our complete information packet.” We urge you to take a look … find out how this “Field of Dreams” can become a reality – and why it must become a reality. Nothing less than our community and our children are at stake.
Click here to download our complete information packet.
Click here to download our complete information packet.
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In developing the Wayne Gomes Youth Baseball Diversity Foundation, Wayne Gomes set out to provide a much-needed avenue for the growth of baseball in the Peninsula area. Knowing what baseball had provided him through the years, Gomes wanted to give underprivileged youth the understanding that the same -- and possibly better -- could happen to them. The result is a dynamic organization that provides disadvantaged youngsters with a place to train, master baseball fundamentals, and learn life skills.
Within a year of its establishment, the Foundation received the Cal Ripken Jr. Award for achievement.
The primary goals of the WGYBDF are:
- To provide youth with an accessible, safe, and adequate facility (Virginia Baseball Academy) where mentors can oversee team-building activities.
- To increase interest and participation in baseball in general, and the RBI program in particular, among the City of Hampton’s middle-school youth.
- To teach youth the fundamentals of baseball, how to compete in a positive way, and how to improve health and lifestyle habits.
- To teach youth the importance of staying in school and receiving a quality education.
Online Donations
Help build the “Field of Dreams” for needy youngsters. There’s no more far-reaching gift than one that touches the lives of young people. Helping just one changes the future. Please make a donation today.