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Community Corner

Buddy Baseball Kicks Off New Season

Buddy Baseball is a non-competitive recreational baseball league offered through Temple Terrace Parks and Recreation for kids with special needs. Players and buddies met each other at the Meet and Greet Sept. 24.

Aidan Bursten, 12, sat with his new friend, Daniel Dookhoo, 10, munching on a cheeseburger and getting acquainted. The two had just been introduced at the Meet and Greet organized by Buddy Baseball founder and director Russ Oberbroeckling.

Aidan will be assisting his new friend on the field as Daniel plays baseball on his new team, the Sharks.

Aidan is an experienced buddy who started volunteering two years ago when he was 10.

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“I like being able to help and to see my buddy progress during the season," he said.

Daniel is clearly excited about his first season playing baseball.

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“My team gets a built in shield with me,” he said. “There’s no team tougher than the Sharks as long as I’m here.”

Seventy-two players and 92 buddies are signed up to play Buddy Baseball this season. The nonprofit program is a non-competitive recreational baseball league offered through  department for boys and girls ages 8-18 with special needs. Each player is matched with a “buddy,” ages 10-18, who can help the player fulfill his or her position on the field.

Temple Terrace resident Kelly Jackson and her daughter, Holly, 15, have been playing baseball since the program started. Holly, a student at Home Life Academy, said she loves socializing in the dugout as well as playing the game.

“I like to run and keep my eye on the ball,” she said.

“We founded a team called the ‘Hit Squad,’ ” Jackson said. “What’s so neat is the parents start out nervous and concerned about their child’s ability to participate, and before they know it, they are watching their child out on the field with their buddy, having a great time.”

Buddy Baseball board member Kerry Brown is a licensed Temple Terrace therapist who specializes in working with kids with special needs. He is available to talk with families about any concerns they have about joining the program.

“This is our fifth season, and we’re really growing,” Brown said. “We have people coming from all over — Brandon, Riverview, Dade City, West Tampa, New Tampa. There is just nothing like Buddy Baseball in many communities.”

Practices are scheduled for 20 minutes before the games. Games are played Saturdays at the Family Recreational Softball Field behind . Each game typically lasts less than an hour.

Janna Danner and her daughter, Lindsey, a ninth-grader at Freedom High School, joined Buddy Baseball in the second season. Son Logan, 12, a student at , volunteers as a buddy. Lindsey has had the same buddy since she started the program.

“They call and email each other,” Danner said. “They are like peanut butter and jelly.”

Rob Kent, a USF medical school graduate doing residency training, said he wanted to volunteer to be a buddy when he saw a billboard advertising Buddy Baseball. His specialty is physical medicine and rehabilitation of people with disabilities.

“I wanted to be a buddy, but when I looked into it, they needed medical staff,” he said.

Now eight residents from USF rotate so that someone is at each game to provide medical assistance if needed. Sanaa Abubaker and Joe Standley attended the Meet and Greet with Kent and said they are happy to be volunteering.

“We all see people with disabilities in the hospital, but out here on the field we can get real life experience with the people we are trained to care for,” said Standley.

The buddies are given support in their roles, both before the season begins and as needed during the season. Dr. Peter Bursten, a licensed Temple Terrace psychiatrist, gives an informal presentation with just the buddies, talking with them about how to work with special needs kids and answering questions about any uncomfortable feelings they might experience.

“I go to all the games, do some coaching, maybe push a kid in a wheelchair around the bases or talk with a parent about their concerns,” Bursten said.

Russ Oberbroeckling addresses the coaches at a special meeting with specific direction about how to coach the games and general guidelines. He also addresses the role of the buddies on the field.

“I don’t just want buddies to be here for service hours,” he said. “Let’s get them engaged and involved.”

Buddy Baseball is providing a supportive environment for families of all kinds to develop friendships and enjoy playing baseball.

“What’s so neat is the parents get to know each other and feel comfortable sharing information about therapies and resources for their children,” Jackson said.

Lunch during the Meet and Greet was donated by two Temple Terrace  restaurants. Jay Carey is an area supervisor for McDonald’s and a coach for the visually impaired team.

“My son is visually impaired, and he says playing on the team is the first time he’s ever felt normal,” Carey said. “He’s made life-long friends because of Buddy Baseball.”

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