2018 MINNESOTA TWINS COMMUNITY REPORT It’S the Confidence to Believe in Yourself
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
The game has a final inning. The mark it leaves is forever. 2018 MINNESOTA TWINS COMMUNITY REPORT It’s the confidence to believe in yourself. It’s the skills to work as part of a team. It’s the determination to meticulously bend your hat in the exact right way. Of course, baseball gives kids life lessons and lifelong skills. But first, it gives them the skills to be a kid. That’s why, for the last 27 years, Twins Community Fund has been dedicated to getting more kids in the game. Because we believe that to help kids get the ball rolling in the right direction, the gap between third and short is a pretty good place to start. 3 A Note from Dave 4 TWINS COMMUNITY FUND 6 Grant Programs (Baseball and Softball) 8 Community Grants 12 Play Ball! Minnesota 14 Terry Ryan Award 16 Twins RBI (Reviving Baseball in the Inner Cities) 18 TwinsCare A NOTE 19 Fundraising Events Calendar 20 COMMUNITY OUTREACH 22 Player and Alumni Outreach FROM DAVE 26 Hope Week Dear Friends: Since 1961, the Minnesota Twins Baseball Club has ballclub’s obvious connection to children. Baseball, after all, remains a been a prominent part of the sports landscape in the Twin Cities, the kids game. With that understanding, the Twins and Twins Community 27 Community Awards state of Minnesota, and the Upper Midwest. Throughout those five- Fund are more committed than ever before to engaging kids in new, plus decades, the Twins have been committed to playing competitive impactful ways. Moreover, it remains our focus to promote the overall 29 Nonprofit Support baseball, providing affordable family entertainment, and making our growth of America’s pastime by ensuring every youngster living in community a better place to live. Those are the principles of the Twins Twins Territory has the opportunity to play the games of baseball 32 Employee Volunteerism Tradition—a mission defined by four words: passion, heart, hustle, and or softball. Moving forward, the Twins organization embraces the fun. As we commence a new baseball season, it is my distinct honor to opportunity to do more and to reach higher. The franchise enjoys a 34 Honoring Service share with you the 2018 Minnesota Twins Community Report. Please special relationship with its fans and therefore accepts an obligation take a moment to review this publication, which provides a “scorecard,” to give back. It’s with those understandings in mind that we provide 36 Diversity and Inclusion so to speak, of the Twins community outreach over the past year and this Community Report with hopes that we can collectively build on its impact on so many people and countless neighborhoods across these results for seasons to come. I look forward to seeing you at the Twins Territory. As you review this report, please take note of the ballpark soon. Win, Twins!!! 38 Learning Through Baseball 40 Go Twins Go Green 41 Board of Directors Dave St. Peter President and Chief Executive Officer 41 Information POINTING KIDS IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. AND IN THE LEFT DIRECTION ON THE BASES. 01 4 TWINS COMMUNITY FUND $150K was granted to youth baseball and GRANT softball organizations. JUNIOR TWINS The Junior Twins program provided $59,000 in grants to 12 teams in 2017. This year PROGRAMS there are 40 Junior Twins organizations FOR BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL in the Upper Midwest, all of whom receive educational resources, coaching tips, Junior Twins logo access, and tickets to Twins FIELDS FOR KIDS: games annually. The Twins Community Fund believes that every kid deserves a safe HENNEPIN COUNTY GRANTS and competitive place to play baseball and softball. Since 1999, the Hennepin County youth baseball and Fields for Kids program has granted more than $4 million to help softball organizations received $150,000 in improve youth ballfields in 744 communities. grants to rebuild fields and purchase new equipment. Grants will provide 940 kids In 2017, the Twins Community Fund gave 48 Fields for Kids grants with new equipment, provide dugouts to 770 totaling $311,438. These grants mean that 10,720 kids will be playing players, and so much more. YOUTH COACHING GRANTS ball on a newly renovated diamond this season. In 2018, more than 20 high school and college students will gain invaluable coaching experience working with youth baseball and softball players directly in 2017 GRANTS their communities. 3 29 7 5 In 2017, 48 fields were renovated, impacting 4 10,720 kids. 6 7 COMMUNITY GRANTS Congratulations to the Junior Rolling Twins, SOUTHWEST FLORIDA GRANTS Junior Wheelchair Softball World Series Over $25,000 was provided to nonprofit Champions 2017. organizations near the Twins Spring Training home of Fort Myers in 2017. ROOTS FOR THE HOME TEAM The Twins Community Fund is a proud supporter of the Roots for the Home Team program. Novice youth gardeners partner with inner-city gardening programs to grow and sell healthy salads. Visit them at JUNIOR ROLLING TWINS Target Field at weekend home games! The Twins Community Fund sponsors the Junior Rolling Twins wheelchair softball team, coordinated by the Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute. Team members learn fundamental softball skills and make new friends as they play in tournaments on a local, state, and national level. 8 9 BASEBALL HELPS KIDS PREPARE FOR WHATEVER COMES NEXT. EXCEPT KNUCKLEBALLS. GOOD LUCK WITH THOSE. SANDLOT PROGRAM With our partners at the Sanneh Foundation and the St. Paul Police Athletic League, the Sandlot Program introduces even more PLAY BALL! kids to the game of baseball in a fun and low-pressure environment. PLAYWORKS Playworks and the Minnesota Twins have MINNESOTA worked to introduce and grow access to baseball and softball for youth in St. Paul and Minneapolis since 2016. Playworks partnered with 14 elementary schools across the Twin Cities and introduced more than 7,000 students to baseball and softball skills in the last school year. MR. BASEBALL/MISS SOFTBALL HIGH SCHOOL ALL-STAR SERIES PREP CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES Each spring, seven Minnesota high school Play Ball! Minnesota is a proud sponsor of The Twins are very proud to host the softball and baseball players are nominated the Minnesota High School All-Star Series Minnesota Prep Championship Series for the Miss Softball and Mr. Baseball for both baseball and softball. These events at Target Field each summer. 2017 saw awards, honoring outstanding athletic and recognize the best graduating seniors from Eden Prairie (AAAA), Waconia (AAA), character achievements. the state. Minnehaha Academy (AA), and Parkers Prairie (A) win the state title at the capital of Twins Territory. PLAY BALL! MINNESOTA YOUTH CLINICS COACHES CONFERENCE AND CLINICS 2017 Mr. Baseball Play Ball! Minnesota Youth Clinics provided free youth baseball Every year, the Minnesota Coaches Conference gathers youth baseball Sam Carlson, Burnsville and softball instruction to kids in 35 Upper Midwest communities and softball coaches from around the state to share ideas and learn 2017 Miss Softball in 2017. More than 4,000 youth have attended a clinic annually for new coaching techniques. Regional coaching clinics are also offered Amber Elliot, Anoka more than 60 years. each spring throughout the Upper Midwest. In 2017, over 4,000 kids received free baseball and softball instruction. TARGET FIELD TAKEOVER The game-day experience at Target Field is one of the best in the bigs, and two youth baseball teams got a taste of it at one of their games. The inaugural Target Field takeover brought the Twins PA announcer, organ player, music cues, mascot, and more to Lee Park in Robbinsdale. Ballplayers were treated to the full Target Field experience, including walk-up music and in-game productions. 12 13 NOTHING STICKS WITH A TERRY RYAN AWARD Established in 2006, the Play Ball! Minnesota Terry Ryan Award KID LIKE BASEBALL. honors a member of the Upper Midwest baseball and softball community that has been a major leader at the youth level. The award acknowledges significant promotional contributions, passion, and improvement of the game in the Upper Midwest. Award winners have displayed a serious dedication to the game and its participants. ALTHOUGH, Play Ball! Minnesota’s highest honor is named after former longtime Minnesota Twins general manager Terry Ryan. The award is in honor of his passion and dedication to the promotion of youth, amateur, and professional baseball and softball throughout Twins Territory. The 2017 Play Ball! Minnesota Terry Ryan Award Winner THE GRASS STAINS DO was Jim Pettersen. Pettersen has coached at the youth, high school, and collegiate level in his illustrious career. He has also been a member of the Fargo Post 2 Baseball Board of Directors since 2005. LAST AWHILE. 2017 Terry Ryan Award Winner Jim Pettersen 14 Twins RBI is proud to be the host of the 2018 RBI World Series. TWINS RBI REVIVING BASEBALL IN THE INNER CITIES All of the nearly 5,000 youth who play baseball or softball through RBI SCHOLARSHIPS the Minneapolis and St. Paul parks programs are members of Twins High school seniors who played in the RBI. These players can participate in RBI Days at Target Field, attend RBI Program are invited to apply for the free skills clinics, try out for a Twins RBI All-Star team, and have the RBI Scholarship, which provides a boy chance to attend Twins games and meet players. and girl from Minneapolis and St. Paul with a scholarship of $2,000 a year toward secondary education. 8U GLOVE PROGRAM RBI ALL-STARS Every kid, age eight or under, playing in the Twins RBI program The Twins RBI All-Star team tryouts are held in June. All-Star teams receives a free Twins glove, as part of the Twins Community Fund’s represent Twins RBI at the Regional Tournament.