The Miracle League of Northwest Ohio (MLNWO) is trying to provide hope to kids like Schyler Young. Schyler loves baseball — the Mud Hens are her favorite team — but she is limited due to balance issues, along with vision and hearing disabilities.

Naoko Aminaka at the new Northwood ball park.

“Schyler has two brothers involved in sports and she wants to do the same,” said Schyler’s mom, Stacey. “[Playing baseball] really helps her self-esteem because she just wants to be involved like the other kids.”

On a normal baseball field, there is a dirt surface, which would not be problem for most people, but causes issues for children with balance issues like Schyler and those in wheelchairs, especially with the divots in the field, said Naoko Aminaka, a member of the MLNWO board of trustees. Moreover, kids in wheelchairs have problems moving on a dirt surface, especially when it rains.

That’s where the Miracle League comes into play. The nonprofit, volunteer organization is striving to build a rubberized field in Northwood near Brentwood Park that provides a flat surface where kids with disabilities can play the sport they love with no worries.

“It will be an all-weather, barrier-free baseball field,” Aminaka said.

The organization has raised more than $150,000 over a three-year period, just enough to lay the rubberized field once the weather breaks.

“[Laying the rubber] wipes out our budget,” Aminaka said. “We’re halfway to our goal. It’s been a long process, but it’s worth it.”

Miracle League is organizing three fundraisers to work toward its financial goal, which would allow for a scoreboard, bleachers and dugouts.

• Inaugural MLNWO 5K Run/2K Walk at Swan Creek Metropark on May 3: Participants check in at 7:30 a.m.; start time will be 9 a.m. Awards will be given to the top three male and female finishers and light refreshments will be provided. For information, visit www.mlnwo.org.
• MLNWO Charity Golf Classic on June 12 at Fallen Timbers Fairways: Prizes awarded for contest holes, as well as first, second, and third place. Mulligans, gimme strings, 50/50, raffles and a betting hole will be available, too. For more information, contact Mike Myers at (419) 467-3433 or myersmr@firstenergycorp.com.
• Toledo Edison Employee’s Friends and Family Ride for Charity: This event will be hosted July 25 with pre-registration by July 11. The format will be a modified poker run and each bike will get a raffle ticket. The starting location will be First Energy Holland Service Center on Angola Road and end at the Village Inn on Holland Sylvania Road. For more info contact, contact Myers.

The MLNWO hosts baseball leagues twice a year — one in the summer (May through June) and one in the fall (September through October). The leagues consist of 35 to 40 kids on three to four teams. Players are matched with a volunteer or buddy, who helps the children run the bases and holds their gloves in the right spot, among other things.

“Seeing the smiles on their faces is the best part of my day,” said Alissa DeLong, MLNWO board member. “It’s more of a rewarding opportunity for us to help them overcome their limitations.”

DeLong and Aminaka started as buddies and have since been named board members. What they have seen over the last few years through their participation has meant a lot to them.

“It makes you realize how lucky you are,” DeLong said. “When we were growing up, we could do anything we wanted. We want these kids to be able to do the same.”

Those words mean a lot to kids like Schyler, whose favorite thing in baseball is hitting a home run.

“[Playing baseball] is fun,” she said. “I like it when everyone cheers.”

“She’s like a fish in the water,” her mom said.

“No, a shark,” Schyler said in response.

This entry was posted on Friday, April 17th, 2009 at 12:00 am and is filed under Baseball, Sports.
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