Archives for November 2011

IronPigs Charities Annual Report Released

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The 201l IronPigs Charities annual report details all of the club’s initiatives from this past year. IronPigs Charities donated $106,000 to local non-profits over the last year, the highest yearly contribution to date.

Established in October, 2007, before the IronPigs ever played a game, IronPigs Charities was created to provide educational and recreational opportunities for Lehigh Valley Youth.

IronPigs Charities is presented by The Air Products Foundation. Thank you to The Air Products Foundation for their continuous support of IronPigs Charities and the Lehigh Valley community.

IronPigs Charities is governed by a 13 member Board of Directors. The Board meets four times annually (March, June, September, December). The 2011 IronPigs Charities report can be viewed by clicking here.

For more information on IronPigs Charities, please call Sarah Marten at (610) 841-1213.
This article originally appeared on the official website of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Click here to view the original story.

Suns Collecting Toys For Tots

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HAGERSTOWN, Md. – The Hagerstown Suns will once again partner with the Marine Corps Reserve to be an official drop-off location for Toys For Tots this holiday season.

Donations of new, unwrapped toys can be made in the Suns front office between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays before December 22. These gifts will be distributed to local social welfare agencies and churches to distribute to needy children on Christmas Day.

The Toys For Tots program only accepts new, unwrapped toys.

Toys for Tots is the Marine Corps’ premier community action program. Annually, an average of 15,000,000 toys is distributed to needy children over the holidays. For more information, visit www.toysfortots.org.

The Hagerstown Suns play at Municipal Stadium and are a Class “A” affiliate of the Washington Nationals. Opening Day will be in Hagerstown April 5, 2012 against the West Virginia Power. Season tickets, mini-plans, and group packages with the Suns are now on sale. For more information, call 301-791-6266, or visit www.hagerstownsuns.com. The Hagerstown Suns are owned by Hagerstown Baseball, LLC.

This article originally appeared on the official website of the Hagerstown Suns. Click here to view the original story.

Drillers Announce Anti-Bullying Program with TPS

Hornsby to Visit Elementary Schools with Anti-Bullying Program

Hornsby is joined by Andre'a Murrell of Williams, Jacqueline Gallegos of The Parent Child Center, Dr. Keith Ballard the Superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools and Heather Johnson of the Tulsa Metro Chamber to announce an Anti-Bullying program that will be presented at TPS Elementary Schools. (Rob Gardenhire)
Hornsby is joined by Andre’a Murrell of Williams, Jacqueline Gallegos of The Parent Child Center, Dr. Keith Ballard the Superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools and Heather Johnson of the Tulsa Metro Chamber to announce an Anti-Bullying program that will be presented at TPS Elementary Schools. (Rob Gardenhire)

The Tulsa Drillers and the Tulsa Public Schools jointly announced today that the baseball club is joining the Tulsa Metro Chamber’s Partners In Education program to deliver an anti-bullying curriculum to elementary schools in the district.

The Drillers mascot, Hornsby, will visit children in grades K-6, accompanied by The Parent Child Center of Tulsa’s “Kids on the Block” puppets. These child-sized puppets, accompanied by performer Jacqueline Gallegos, will present a bully awareness skit. Kids on the Block are frequent visitors to classrooms to teach children how to protect themselves in difficult situations, including bullying, “stranger danger” and physical abuse.

“The Tulsa Drillers take sportsmanship behavior very seriously, both on and off the field,” said Mike Melega, general manager of the Tulsa Drillers. “We think it is important to educate students early about healthy responses to bullying, and how to recognize it. Hornsby will be a great advocate for students as he makes his way into elementary schools with the Kids on the Block.”

“TPS is thankful to the Tulsa Drillers and the Tulsa Chamber for helping us to shed light on bullying in our schools,” said Dr. Keith Ballad, superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools. “Our teachers and principals are always on the look-out for bullying behavior, as it takes many different forms. As vigilant as we are, however, the sad fact is that we have to equip students to be supportive of each other and to seek help before trouble escalates. Our goal is to create a safe learning environment for all students.”

Bullying is a problem of national proportions, as the spotlight has been cast recently on a number of high-profile incidents. Recent research has shown that over 20 percent of students feel unsafe at school due to direct or observed teasing, threats, bullying and other stressors.

Studies have also shown that children who have been identified as a bully by age eight are six times more likely to have a criminal conviction by age 24. Children who are bullies may continue to be bullies as adults, and are more prone to becoming child and spouse abusers.

At TPS, reported instances of bullying have increased in recent years, in part due to better tracking. During the 2010-11 school year, the TPS board strengthened its policy on bullying, and the district has invested heavily in staff development for teachers and administrators to aid in their awareness of bullying behaviors.

Schools interested in learning more about the Anti-Bullying Program, can contact Jacqueline Gallegos with The Parent Child Center of Tulsa at (918) 699-0550.

This article originally appeared on the official website of the Tulsa Drillers. Click here to view the original story.