Community Strong

My summer of baseball has come to an end. I loved every second spent in the park with those 12 kids. We played a game every Tuesday night, participated in 5 tournaments, facing countless players and coaches. Each team had 9-12 players and 3-4 coaches. In all of the teams we met this summer, there were a handful of non-white coaches and exactly one other female coach. In a co-ed league I can think of 2 girl players all summer. This was exactly what I expected when I signed up to volunteer coach - none of these numbers are surprising to me. Baseball — sports — continues to be a very male dominated world. 

I didn’t volunteer just to spend extra time with my kid (although an important factor), or help kids develop physical literacy and fundamental movement patterns (another very important factor). I stepped into this venture because I wanted my kids to see that women can be engaged in sport in a number of different ways - on the field and in leadership roles.  I wanted my kids to see people of colour represented in various positions of leadership. I realize now that it wasn’t just for my kids, and it wasn’t just for our team - it was also for every kid who sat across the diamond. It was for those 2 girls who are being their own kind of brave and forging their own path in sport. 

I keep thinking about the different ways I can step up to the plate and show my kids how to break barriers and push past stereotypical assumptions about women and people of colour. How can I teach them to never accept the status quo? Then I realize that I’m already doing it. Running and building my own business in a way that is authentic to me. Building a community that is based on strength, empowerment, inclusion, confidence and individuality. The summer may be over, but I’m just getting started.

In strength and love,

KSA