Not too long ago, the teams of Little League, Pony League, Church leagues and adult leagues were proudly sponsored by local businesses. When big box stores like WalMart shuttered the stores on small town Main St., they also impoverished the Chambers, Rotaries, Lions, etc. which until recently had paid for the uniforms, bases and chalk lines of baseball, and even the eye tests that got glasses for underprivileged kids.
Baseball in the community (and football, basketball, hockey, soccer) has recently suffered as much as school marching bands and after-school programs, even while it prospered in affluent communities where mom and dad bought the uniforms, bats and snacks.
Dear President Obama,
We welcome your vision for a nation which takes responsibility for itself from the ground up, and which is transparent and empowering from the top down. You are an athlete and a baseball man, a model of bi-racial sensitivity and intelligence, a citizen of the world and this great nation. Before the responsibilities of your office inevitably causes distance to grow between us, please accept some advice from a fellow athlete, baseball man, and community organizer.
1.
We all understand what it means to be a fan of your team, and the passion for your White Sox. But you are now the President, from the great City of Chicago. It’s time to show love to the Cubbies . . . who, for example, this fan hopes will play the Red Sox in the World Series, in Chicago and Boston, in 2009, with you in attendance, cheering on both teams. It’s OK to root for a team from each of the National and American leagues
2.
You are now the first citizen of the USA. As such, all teams, Major & Minor, Little League and Big League, are your teams. Even in baseball, bi-partisan support of the Game is important. You will be living in D.C. The Nats and Orioles are now your backup teams. Enjoy them. Go to the games. When the Pale Hose play the O’s, honor your new neighborhood by wishing them both well, and DON’T wear your White Sox hat to the game unless you also wear an Oriole’s jacket or shirt.
3.
In fact, your daughters will hopefully spend the next 8 years growing up in the White House. If they inherit your passion for things baseball, their home teams will be either the Nat’s or O’s. Accept it, enjoy it.
4.
As a community organizer, I am sure you recognize the opportunity to build communities from the roots up, through baseball (and other sports and after school programs) employing youth activities as methods to form solid citizens, prevent crime and drug abuse, empower families and volunteers from all ages, races, economic status to, as you put it, Rebuild a United States of America.
5.
May I suggest using some of those billions of stimulus $$ to provide serious tax credits to local businesses, MLB, MiLB, (NBA, NFL, NHL) national and international corporations to aggressively (key word is aggressively) support their communities with cash and volunteers to re-power the RBI program, Boys & Girls Clubs, Little League, Pony League, Independent Leagues, High School baseball, School Athletic, Music, Arts programs . . . programs designed to raise kids properly, keep them busy and constructive after school, on weekends & vacations, involve the community around our children, restore the participation of small business in the process of building America’s future. Think back to when baseball ruled the neighborhoods for 6 months each year; and what happened to the fabric of our society when baseball left the neighborhoods. I suggest starting with baseball because it is a 6 month season, its 30 MLB and about 200 MiLB teams have existing community programs that can be enhanced, and is a relatively inexpensive outdoor American sport.
Good luck, President Obama. We look forward to the happier, healthier, greener, safer, smarter, more inter-connected world that your community based programs can bring about.
Gerry