Community Sport

As I sit here in sunny Arizona watching the Dodgers at their morning practice and receive text messages about the predicted snow back home, I am reminded that spring is here! Baseball has begun and Maryland weather is whacky! Welcome to spring.

Baseball has been a part of our lives for as long as I can remember. When we moved to Frederick years ago, we got caught up in the idea of a minor league team coming to play in our new “hometown.” Baseball has, over the years, become a community sport for us.

I was a Girl Scout leader while Tiffany was growing up and my Cadette troop decided that they wanted to travel. We picked an itinerary for a trip to Mexico and began the arduous task of raising money. Each girl in the troop raised her own funds for the trip. Now you might not think that baseball and scouting would go hand in hand, but they do.

Not only did our home team, the Frederick Keys, offer special Scout nights where my girls got in free or at a reduced rate, but they also offered the opportunity for non-profit organizations to fundraise in the concession stands. And that is precisely what my girls did one summer. They spent evenings and afternoons dishing out hot dogs and soft pretzels. They learned about patience and customer service and how to handle a crowd. The Girl Scouts, and there were many, who were involved in fundraising at Harry Grove stadium benefited in a variety of ways from our community team. Many continue to be baseball fans today.

I was also very active with the Fredericktowne Players for many years. Putting on a show is an expensive endeavor and so we were always looking for new and creative ways to earn money. We were looking for something “fun.”

Our community team suggested that the Players coordinate The Fun Patrol at the stadium. So for two baseball seasons, volunteer performers, set constructors, make up artists and others joined the ranks of the Patrol. We were responsible for on-field antics, games, and just generally getting the crowd rowdy. For some older members, this meant crawling on to the top of the dug-out, limping up and down the stadium stairs, and rushing back to an air conditioned press box to cool down in the summer months. The relationship between the arts community and the baseball community continues.

The Keys have reached out to help the Scouts, the Players, local marching bands and cheerleading organizations, and the people of Frederick County have been there to support the community’s team.