Take me out to the...FIELD!

Front Gate at National’s Park

Have I told you how much I love my internship? Well, I LOVE MY INTERNSHIP! Let’s take a refresher course on what I do. I work for Book Hill Partners, which is a PR firm, and my special project is The Taylor Hooton Foundation. The THF is a non-profit organization which fights steroid use within children and teens. The foundation was started by Don Hooton, who lost his son Taylor to steroid use. Their main outreach program is called Hoot’s Chalk Talks. Don Hooton has partnered with MLB to go around the Nation visiting teams and talking to kids about the dangers of steroid use at the ballparks. My job consists of getting the media to the ballparks to cover the event. I use social networking to drive traffic to the program...You know...Facebook, Myspace, Twitter...etc. I write letters and make calls to pitch the event to the media. Well, my hard work finally paid off!

Don talking to the kids

On July 22, Hoot’s Chalk Talk came to the Nation’s Capital! The other interns and I were invited to the event at National’s Park. OMG! I was so excited! I had already been to the stadium for a game, but I had never been on the field of a MLB team. The event started at 10 a.m., and I finally got to meet Don in person. He is just as nice in person as on the phone. We were taken down to the field where we saw some people dressed in National’s gear waiting for us. Two of the men were the head athletic trainers for the team, and the two other were National’s players. Pitcher Garrett Mock and outfielder Willy Harris took the time to spend their day with the kids. They opened the gate for us and let us onto the field. Yes, I did feel like a kid at a candy shop! I think I was more excited to be on the field than some of the 10-year-olds who were part of the program.

On the field!

National’s trainer and players

Don gave a speech about the dangers of steroids and shared his personally story about his son to the kids and parents. The kids were then divided into three different groups: drills, health, and sports talk. One of the trainers showed the kids different drills and skills they can use to get better and quicker. The other talked to them about eating the right food and exercising. And the players talked to the kids about life as a professional baseball player and making the right choices in life. After the talks…it was time for the Home Run Derby! We all walked to right field (Man, these outfielders cover so much land..Holy Moly) where they set up a home plate and a pitcher’s mound. Each kid was given five outs to “hit the ball out of the park.” Harris pitched to all of them and a few were able to hit the ball out. The kids had a great time trying to catch the other balls. Personally, I wanted to go hit also…but I was in a skirt. It was a great day, and I will never forget it. Oh, and I am sure the kids won’t forget it either.

The Whole Group

Leli’s recommendation for the week: Get your butts of the couch and play catch outside.

Until next time..Ciao