Volunteer with Miracle League

I had an amazing time at Miracle League! Miracle League is a non profit organization that puts together a game of baseball for individuals with disabilities at all ages. This gives the players a chance to have fun and play a sport in a supportive and encouraging environment. It was amazing to see all the coaches and volunteers work together to make sure the players had assistance with the game, as well as feeling cared about. I am very happy that I got to be apart of this experience. I loved seeing the smiles on players faces as they ran the bases with me. I have always loved being able to make people feel understood and that they are valued, and this opportunity really allowed me to do this. I realized through this experience how much I value purpose in the work that I do. Helping people and being empathetic to others is very important and being able to provide this gives me a real since of purpose and fulfillment. I hope I have a career that allows me to use these emotional intelligent skills so I can feel that same sense of fulfillment and purpose that I felt at this event.

Volunteering with the Miracle League was such an amazing experience. I was a "buddy" for two players, which meant I supported them as they bat and ran bases. I also bonded with them in the outfield while making sure they were having fun and staying engaged.

The mission of the Miracle League is to provide equal opportunities to people with disabilities to play baseball, which connects to my values of inclusion and empathy through showing me how important it is for everyone to experience the joy of playing sports. All of the volunteers worked together to make the game special by practicing patience and cheering for all of the players, which showed how these events create such a loving and supportive community.

Something that I learned was that Wilmington is home to one of the largest Miracle League fields in the country, which emphasized how important it is to volunteer and help support these games. I really enjoyed volunteering with the lovely staff and amazing players, and I would be happy to volunteer again!

I volunteered at Miracle League this Saturday morning. I was a “buddy” for two different individuals with disabilities. We were matched up to play a baseball game together. I stayed by my buddy’s side the entire time and encouraged them to participate. We ran the bases together, hit at bats, and stayed occupied in the outfield. It made me so happy to see everyone working and playing together. I saw mutual benefits for both parties involved. Everyone had smiles on their faces, it was amazing to see. This experienced connected to my interests because I believe that everyone should have an opportunity to participate in sports. I think exercising and interacting with people are two amazing ways to improve everyone’s life. This experience also has great outlets for leadership for everyone involved. Kids and adults can become coaches and lead people in their community. This experience makes me want to use my future career in business for good and to benefit my community.

Through Miracle League I was given the opportunity to be a buddy for a 10 year old girl and 16 year old girl both with special needs. During this time, as a buddy, I made friends with the participants as well as guided them through a game of T-ball. People worked together as a group and with a great attitude to solve any problem that came their way. This experience connected to my values because I believe that every individual should have the opportunity to play a fun outdoor game and have the ability to achieve whatever they desire, no matter the circumstance. My goal in life is to make everyone feel seen and special, and I believe that I was able to leave that impact on participants today. I learned that the organization's mission is to give every person with special needs an opportunity to go out there and have fun being themselves. This experience allowed me to see for my future in business that no matter what is written on paper, everyone is human and has a great heart and motivation.

My teammates and I volunteer with Miracle League many times a year. We genuinely enjoy going. When we are there, we are responsible for helping the teams play. Usually, we get paired up with one person and we are their buddy for the session. On this day, I wasn’t paired with one specific buddy because there were more volunteers than there were athletes. So, my role for this day was to wander around and help other people out with their buddies. I would often grab a ball and see if some of the athletes wanted to have a catch. Some of them enjoy playing and some of them more so just enjoy being there and being present. The younger kids often have a lot of energy. They are so fun to be around. I love hearing all of their walk-up songs and getting to know them and their personalities. After volunteering at Miracle League a decent number of times, you begin to know some of the players that are always there. However, it is also fun to meet new people. All of the people at Miracle League are so great. You can really tell how much all of these parents love their kids and how much energy and effort they put into them. Every time I volunteer with Miracle League, I feel extremely inspired.