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| (pic link: Twitter @Dodgers) |
Matt Kemp and former Dodger Juan Pierre visited the Baseball Urban Youth Academy in Compton on Saturday. Greeting them were a bunch of Little Leaguers. Both Kemp and Pierre shared their experiences and offered career and life skills advice. Via Austin Laymance at MLB.com:
"There's more to life than baseball, just remember that," Kemp told the group of adoring youngsters. "Baseball is important, it can take you places, it can do a lot of things for you. But there's more to life than baseball, like getting good grades or going to college. Listen to your parents. Listen to your teachers. Make good grades. Not everybody becomes a Major League Baseball player, but you guys can be successful. It depends on how hard you work. If you want to be successful, you have to work hard and your dreams will come true."Check out some great photos from the event via Jon SooHoo, over here. Watch a video from the Dodgers here. Below is another video that is worth your time to watch.
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Both AJ Ellis and Brandon League have joined with a non-profit called Vision To Learn in order to distribute free eye glasses to elementary school students in low-income communities throughout California. In fact, they'll be visiting Dorris Place Elementary School tomorrow to do just that. On top of that, they will host 500 fans (including kids who received eye glasses) for a game at Dodger Stadium on May 24 against the Cardinals.
Per a Dodgers press release:
Research tells us 80% of all learning during a child’s first 12 years is obtained through vision and as many as 15% of students in Los Angeles elementary schools have undetected vision problems. Vision To Learn was created to address this issue and Vision To Learn Mobile Eye Clinic travels throughout the community on a daily basis. Endowing children with good eyesight early in life enables them to better focus on the future. It’s simple - if you can’t see, you can’t learn. To date, Vision To Learn has visited 110 schools, examined 8,129 students, and provided 6,148 children with free eyeglasses.Both AJ Ellis and Brandon League wear glasses.
Pic credit above: Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2013
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| (Credit: Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2012) |
Adrian Gonzalez and his wife Betsy have begun hosting families on Viva Los Dodgers Day; starting with this afternoon's Mother’s Day game against the Miami Marlins. Via a Dodgers press release:
This Sunday, Gonzalez will host families from Padres Contra El Cancer, an organization committed to improving the quality of life for Latino children with cancer and their families. The Gonzalez family supports Padres Contra El Cancer throughout the year.
“My wife Betsy and I wanted to get families to Dodger games this season because we think a day at the ballpark is a wonderful way for families to spend time together,” said Adrian Gonzalez. “We chose Viva Los Dodgers Day because it offers a great family-friendly experience right before the game. We’re looking forward to hosting groups that may not have been able to make it out here otherwise.”72 fans will be hosted by the Gonzalez's for every Sunday Dodger home game.
“We’re very happy to host families at Viva Los Dodgers day at Dodger Stadium,” said Betsy Gonzalez. “Family is the most important thing to us along with building our connection with the LA community. We look forward to this program and to continuing our charitable work in LA with the help of the Dodgers.”
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