Meet Madison ~ Our runner!

I remember the first time that I heard about the Challenger League, it was through a friend on Facebook.  I was so excited to find out that there was a SPORT that my daughter could play.  I made way down to Little League signups…which I have never experienced before.  I walked into the local sports store, where signups take place, and there were tables of people with clip boards, chatting amongst themselves.  Having never done this before, I didn’t even know where to start.  Many questions flooded with emotions raced through my head…Will my daughter REALLY be allowed to play? She hasn’t ever played before, how will she do?  How am I going to help her?  She is a runner…how will they help control her?  She has NO SAFETY skills, how do I keep her safe?....Let’s just say I was full of questions and ANXIETY….UNTIL…..I saw this sweet lady with a big friendly smile welcoming me to her sign up table.  I started with the questions and explaining my daughters disabilities and with her big smile…..she made me feel like it was NO BIG DEAL!  She told me that NO CHILD with disabilities would be turned away, no matter what the situation was.   I have never experienced that before.  EVERY activity that I do with my daughter is calculated and planned, and when she told me I WASN’T allowed to help, I thought she was crazy.  How will that ever work?

It wasn’t until Madison’s  first game that I realized...this is something special…..

Opening day, we wake up and my daughter puts on her uniform…now mind you, she doesn’t speak so she shares her emotions though signing, and visual cues…BUT it was very clear by her swagger of

pride and HUGE beaming smile…she was excited!  SHE WAS A BASEBALL PLAYER and she knew it!  SHE WAS PART OF THE GIANTS!  We headed out to the baseball field and it all began.  Maddy headed to the dugout with her BUDDY…her big sister.  A buddy is someone there to guide you, and show you the ropes….remember, most of the kids have NEVER had the opportunity to play sports before.  Maddy’s buddy was extra special because it was her big sister.  After years of sitting on the sidelines watching her sister play basketball, volleyball and all of the other sports, this was HER time to shine.  She sat in the dugout waiting to play the game.  One by one, the players got up and went out to bat, ran the bases and went out to field after the inning….it was amazing!

As a mother, I cannot begin to express how I felt at the first game.  I watched these children smile…BEAM, like I have never witnessed before.  I watched parents cheer EVERY player on!  I watched bystanders wipe away tears, as the love of baseball and children merged into one big blessing.  Thank goodness I was wearing sun glasses, because I couldn’t hold back my excitement for my daughter, they streamed down my cheek.  Maddy finally had something of her OWN!  SHE LOVES BASEBALL! 

Remember how I told you that she doesn’t talk?  Well, she is learning sign language and her vocabulary isn’t very big yet, but SHE put together the signs and SAID “I LOVE BASEBALL!”. 

We have been blessed finding the  Vacaville Challenger Little League and will be part of this program for as long as they let our crazy family in the gates…LOL.

Proud Mommy of Madison #19

Christa Poe