Challenger Baseball offers kids with disabilities the chance to swing for the fences
A second-year baseball program is growing in Kitchener is opening more doors to allow those with disabilities to swing for the fences and round the bases.
Challenger Baseball is unique in Waterloo region, giving kids with physical and cognitive disabilities a place to hit the diamond.
“This program is for anyone and it’s a safe place,” said Cathy Lapar, program coordinator with Challenger Baseball.
According to their website, “To be eligible for Challenger Baseball, participants must have a physical disability, an intellectual disability, a cognitive delay, or a developmental disability.”
The games are played at Crosby Park, and include sensory equipment and help from coaches.
Players get the support you wouldn’t normally see in traditional baseball leagues.
“A lot of kids did play house league, but they did find it very challenging. Some found it scary and it wasn’t inclusive,” said Lapar.
Sofia Talboom,6, joined the program in its inaugural season last year.
Now in its second season, the league has grown from 9 players to 28. “Last year I made a friend named Elise,” said Talboom.
Sofia’s dad, John Talboom, said the program has expanded through word of mouth.
“We came here and met lots of people. We told other people, they’ve told other people, it’s grown. We’ve seen such a positive vibe being sent out to everybody,” he said.
Running in partnership with Kitchener Minor Baseball and the Toronto Blue Jays’ Jays Care Foundation, Challenger Baseball runs for 11 weeks with registration open for more kids to join throughout the season.
“I think we’re just going to see more growth, more teams, more people out,” John said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.