Fairfax Baseball Clinic
By ppellerin
FORMER ORIOLE AL BUMBRY TO BE CELEBRITY MENTOR
AT DIAMOND DREAM CLINICS FOR FAIRFAX COUNTY STUDENTS
Seven Clinics Sponsored by Diamond Dream Foundation Start May 8
Former Baltimore Oriole great Al Bumbry will join Diamond Dream Foundation (DDF) Chairman and Major League Hall-of- Famer Don Buford and a number of enthusiastic volunteers in an after-school program designed to introduce 50 Fairfax County middle school students to the joys and magic of baseball and softball.
The clinics begin on Thursday, May 8 and will continue every Thursday for six consecutive weeks through June 12 at Liberty Middle School on Union Mill Road in Clifton, VA. Clinics begin at 3 p.m. and the students are dismissed in time for the 4:50 p.m. school bus.
According to Robert Duff, the Foundation’s CEO, these structured clinics provide equipment, field maintenance and the mentoring needed to not only introduce these young students to baseball and softball, but also to promote passion, pride and integrity in these students by providing essential life skills through sports.
Now in its second year, these clinics are sponsored by DDF, a local organization that supports regional youth baseball and softball initiatives through philanthropic, educational, academic and on-field efforts. DDF is partnering with the Fairfax County Public Schools and the Fairfax County Department of Community and Recreation Services to bring a sports component to the Fairfax County Middle School After School Programs (MSAS). DDF also sponsors a summer camp for students.
“We’ve got some kids at these clinics who have never played baseball before,” said Duff. “All our instructors still enjoy playing baseball and pass that knowledge along to these students. We want to teach these kids that when you find something you like as a youngster, you keep it with you for the rest of your life.”
“The Diamond Dream Foundation is an excellent example of a communit-based organization that has stepped up to the plate to support our efforts in the development of youth enrolled in the MSAS,” said Patricia D. Franckewitz, director of the Fairfax County Department of Community and Recreation Services.
Duff said the DDF is always looking for volunteers who “want to support our upcoming clinics and summer camps by working with local young people and having a good time in the process.”
The Diamond Dream Foundation also sponsors a golf tournament in the fall. Washington Nationals manager Manny Acta, Orioles legend Brooks Robinson, baseball celebrities Jose Cardenal, Tippy Martinez, Tim Toleman, Paul Blair and Washington Senators legend Frank Howard are just some of the celebrity baseball players expected to play in the Diamond Dream Foundation Golf Classic on Monday, September 22 at the Army-Navy Country Club in Fairfax.
For more information on the clinics and golf tournament or to volunteer at one or more of the clinics, contact Majorie Castro, COO of the Foundation, at (703) 938-5184 or visit the Web site at www.diamonddreamfoundation.org.
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