December 16 - For some, baseball has much more meaning than just a game.
Through their work with special needs players from Dulles Little League’s Challenger Division over the past six years, players from Dominion High School’s varsity and junior varsity teams have had the opportunity to experience that feeling.
The experience, Titans coach Jeff Berg says, has proven to be both rewarding and a teachable moment for his players.
“What is really cool about our program is our students run it,” Berg said. “We have practice in the morning, the kids go home, and then they scoot off to Challenger.
The Challenger Division allows the kids with special needs to bond and develop relationships that are not based on how fast they can run to first base or how far they can hit the ball, but rather based around a mutual love for the game. Dominion is one of several high schools in Northern Virginia that participate in the program.
Berg says one result of the Titans players coordinating and facilitating the program, which takes place each Saturday during the Little League season, is that they are learning organization, communication and coaching skills that will benefit them on and off the field. Another is the fulfillment of giving back to their community and witnessing the Challenger players improve each week.
“The underclassmen each year start to develop relationships, and the kids get more comfortable with each other,” Berg said. “The relationships we create have developed into strong bonds, and they last over the years. It’s pretty cool to see it happen.”
Seniors Jason Kelly and Evan Slebrch will serve as two of the team’s captains this spring, and both say they are looking forward to once again taking the field with the Challenger players.
“After spending time and talking with the players it was a lot more fun than I thought it was going to be and I really got to know some of them,” senior Jason Kelly said. “It’s a good experience, so I kept going back and going back.”
Added Slebrch: “As you get older you want to be there more and you go more often because you really enjoy being around those kids. I am in the situation where I am now the leader and I need to show the younger kids what to do and how to motivate the kids with special needs.”
Each time they meet, the Titans and Challenger kids play catch, take swings at the plate and run the bases. Dominion’s players take time during these drills to lend advice and make adjustments.
“My favorite part is seeing the kids having fun and enjoying something that I have a big passion for, and seeing them have the opportunity to enjoy the game as well,” Slebrch said.
Kelly can see the enjoyment in the Challenger player’s eyes that he had when he first started playing the game.
“It’s cool to see them with a smile on their face and enjoy playing a sport I have been playing since I was four-years-old,” he said. “Also, seeing the parents enjoying their kids playing and seeing them cheer their kids on.”
Wendy Melcher began overseeing DLL’s Challenger Division in 2000, when the division had just two teams. This year, that number had grown to 10 teams, with over 75 participants. Melcher depends on volunteers such as Dominion’s to continue and grow the program.
“Dominion volunteering provides an opportunity for these parents for the first time ever to sit in the stands and actually cheer for their kid,” Melcher said. “They just love to come out and be a part of something and be accepted in a place where they can have fun and laugh and just be accepted for who they are.
“Hitting a small, circular ball can cross boundaries.”
Berg places the responsibilities of the partnership on three student captains, typically two seniors and an underclassman. Those captains communicate with Melcher regarding scheduling and verify there are enough volunteers signed up each weekend.
“Our kids have a lot going on in their lives,” Berg said. “It’s important we get off the field and get involved in the community and give back and get a different perspective outside of inside the lines.”
“They don’t realize these kids really bless you so greatly and you walk away with more than what you gave them,” Melcher said.
The DLL Challenger Division games are held at Greg Crittenden Memorial Park in Ashburn, the only wheelchair accessible diamond in the county. Melcher said the division’s has expanded after the loss of the Sterling branch, and now accepts anyone within the boundaries of District 16, which serves Loudoun and Fauquier counties.
Dominion will host its annual Challenger game this spring, with participants in the Challenger Division having their names announced during the introduction of the Titans’ starting lineup.
“I wouldn’t [otherwise] have the opportunity to meet them and talk to them,” Kelly said. “But the game of baseball has given us the opportunity to meet and form a relationship with them and understand what they are going through and how we can help.”
Photo courtesy of Dulles Little League's Challenger Division
