VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) — A special support night will be held at Valley Strong Ballpark in Visalia.
“Not only can the kids be their true selves, but the parents can be their true selves too,” says Our House founder Karina Carillo.
For the third year in a row, Visalia Rawhide has partnered with Adapted Athlete, a nonprofit organization that helps a variety of people struggling with mental, physical and cognitive challenges.
“It’s really great to see the excitement these kids get knowing they can come to a baseball game and have fun with everyone,” said Dalila Palacios, ticket operations manager for Visalia Rawhide.
Nikki Scholl, executive director of Adapted Athletes, said she started the program “by chance” when a friend asked her to train her daughter, who has special needs.
“People with disabilities are sort of marginalized in the community, but this generation of parents wants their children to be seen and heard,” Scholl said.
Over the past three years, the program has expanded to private training clinics and sports leagues serving hundreds of individuals.
But Scholl wanted to do more than that, and so the idea for Baseball Night was born.
“We came to Rawhide with a dream and five dollars,” she said.
Community support and donations allowed Adapted Athlete to host a night out for family and friends.
Rawhide has adapted.
“We’ll have food with pictures so people who don’t speak the language can order with dignity,” Scholl says, “and we’ll regulate the sound throughout the night to create a safe space for families.”
The Adapted players also threw the first pitch and sang the national anthem, giving the players an unforgettable night at the stadium.
“She made a dream come true that we as parents thought was impossible,” Carillo said.
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