[HCCN] Pastors for Peace Caravan to Cuba

[Judith Robbins]



SPORTS

Speaking the ‘universal language’ — Baseball



Brunswick High School students Alex Toole, left, and Jack Faherty  
have been collecting used basball equipment to send to Cuba. The  
project, part of their Service Learning class studies, is nearly  
complete as the equipment is ready to leave on Sunday.

Courtesy of Jack Faherty
Students collect equipment to give to Cuban children
By Jack Faherty, Special to WoRD
Published:
Monday, June 29, 2009 2:23 PM EDT
BRUNSWICK — On Sunday, new and used youth baseball equipment will  
begin the long journey from Maine to Cuba. This shipment was made  
possible by two Brunswick High School juniors who want to share their  
love for baseball with Cuban children.

Jack Faherty and Alex Toole, who both play baseball for the high  
school, conceived the notion of donating baseball equipment to needy  
children as part of the BHS’ Service Learning class.

For four months, the boys worked to collect balls, bats, helmets,  
gloves and catchers’ equipment. Local youth baseball leagues donated  
much of the gear, which was exhaustively cataloged by Toole. Other  
equipment was solicited from the high school community and from friends.

“I know when I was little, there was nothing I wanted more than to  
play some pick-up baseball with my friends,” said Toole. “It’s  
unfortunate that some kids aren’t given the same opportunities to  
play, so it’s my hope that this gear will make someone smile just as  
I did when I was younger.”

“Everybody’s heard about the passion Cuban kids have for baseball.  
Alex and I share that passion,” said Faherty.

Because of the economic embargo by the United States against Cuba, a  
topic of controversy since its inception in 1960, the equipment  
cannot be shipped directly from Brunswick to Cuba. However, Faherty  
and Toole were able to contact a nonprofit organization called  
Pastors for Peace, which will bring the gear to Cuba through Mexico.

Pastors for Peace, a nationwide group that transports supplies to  
Cuba every summer from all corners of the U.S. and Canada, has a  
relationship with members of Let Cuba Live, a Brunswick organization,  
which helped pack and store the equipment. In July, the Pastors for  
Peace caravan will pick up the baseball equipment in Brunswick before  
continuing the journey south, eventually converging with all other  
caravans in Texas.

The group does not ask for a license from the government to travel  
into Cuba, but rather crosses the border into Mexico, and sends the  
equipment by ship.

The boys boxed and labeled the gear in preparation for its long  
journey. The final tally: 32 bats, 28 helmets, 54 balls, four sets of  
catchers’ equipment, and numerous fielding gloves. With additional  
youth league gear left over, the boys plan to send more equipment  
next year.

Many dedicated people and organizations helped make the shipment to  
Cuba possible. The boys send their thanks to youth league coach Chris  
Toole; Barbara West, a member of Let Cuba Live since the 1990s, who  
helped organize the gear for the trip; Tina Phillips and Genie  
Wheelwright of the Brunswick-Trinidad Sister City Association; and  
Rick Wilson, Service Learning teacher, Brunswick High School.

For more information about Let Cuba Live, call 743-2183.

word at timesrecord.com



Copyright © 2009 - Times Record
[x] Close Window
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mainetalk.org/pipermail/hccn_mainetalk.org/attachments/20090701/3dbca05d/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: logo_left.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 62193 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://mainetalk.org/pipermail/hccn_mainetalk.org/attachments/20090701/3dbca05d/attachment.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: doc4a49051e08f53684432344.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 16108 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://mainetalk.org/pipermail/hccn_mainetalk.org/attachments/20090701/3dbca05d/attachment-0001.jpg>