Challenger Baseball Allows Participants to 'Always Have Fun'

Manny Thompson and Jillian Witwicki have more than a few things in common. They share many of the same friends, they’re young, sociable, sunny, fun and they both love baseball.

It makes little difference that Manny, of Hamilton, is nine and has Down Syndrome and Jillian is a freshman at in Hamilton - they both love fielding balls, swinging at pitches and running the bases.

“I live down the street from ,” Witwicki said telling of how she came to know Thompson four years ago. “My brothers (and I) were always down there playing baseball.”

As if referring to the usual pick-up game she added, “And one day I saw (Manny’s) group and I got involved.”

The group, Massachusetts District 15 Challenger Baseball, is a division of . The players are kids like Thompson who have physical, developmental and intellectual disabilities. What lured Witwicki in was sport in the finest sense of the word.

The scene that attracted Witwicki was composed of District 15 Challenger players buddied-up one-on-one with Little League counterparts, and a good many cheering parents.

In a Challenger ball game "buddies" paired with "Challenger" players assist the play, and no score is kept. The purpose of the game is not to determine the winning team but to provide kids with disabilities the opportunity and assistance needed to experience the joy of playing baseball.

Though skilled Little Leaguers and other volunteer buddies like Witwicki provide help where needed to keep the game moving, the intention is to allow the Challenge kids to engage as much as possible. If a Little Leaguer grabs a fly ball, he or she will quickly turn it over to their buddy to continue the play.

“It’s amazing to me how good they are with the (Challenger) kids," Manny’s mother, Nancy Thompson said about Little League players. "A lot of us are in tears a lot of the time.”

Sharing her reason for participating, Witwicki said; “Once I did get involved I loved it. I always wanted kids to have the same opportunity that I did.”

“All the (Challenger) kids are really happy,” giving insight into what keeps her returning to help out every Sunday. “They always have fun, they love every minute of it.”

Manny, who was adopted by Nancy, lived in Hamilton in foster care until he was nearly two-years-old.

“I went to visit him in the foster home once a week for about a year. It was nice to get to know him - I knew what I was getting into,” she said.

Though courageous by any measure, Thompson was well prepared when she entered into parenting a child with Down Syndrome.

“I knew I wanted a child with Down Syndrome, I (had) worked with kids with Down Syndrome at the park in Hamilton," she said. "I worked with adolescent girls and adults with special needs.”

Putting to rest any doubt about the wisdom of her choices she laughed and added, “It’s amazing - I’d like to have about ten more."