Jackie Robinson Ballpark to Become Tobacco Free

DAYTONA BEACH, FL – On Thursday, November 16th, the Daytona Tortugas will be making a special announcement regarding Radiology Associates Field at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. The Daytona Tortugas will announce plans for a tobacco free ballpark in 2018 with the support of community partners including the Tobacco Free Volusia County Partnership, One Voice for Volusia, Bethune-Cookman University, the Florida Department of Health in Volusia County, and others.

 

In 2017, the Daytona Tortugas have welcomed over 175,000 fans to Tortugas games, charity runs, concerts and many other events at the ballpark. The Tortugas mission is to provide affordable, family-fun entertainment to Volusia and Flagler Counties, and the Central Florida Region. The Tobacco Free Policy will prohibit tobacco use in the ballpark, including electronic devices and apply to all Tortugas staff, players and fans.

 

Jackie Robinson Ballpark becoming a tobacco free ballpark is part of a movement by the Tortugas to help exemplify a healthy environment and create a positive model for our youth to follow. Daytona Tortugas President, Ryan Keur stated “this is a big step for the Tortugas and Jackie Robinson Ballpark in our community. As the premier family destination for Volusia County, it’s important that we are role models in our community and provide a healthy, family-friendly atmosphere for our fans.” A Tobacco Free Florida booth will be present at the games, providing information on how to quit tobacco use.

 

The Tortugas will be celebrating this change with The Great American Smoke Out at The Jack on Thursday, November 16th, sponsored by Tobacco Free Florida and the State of Florida. To commemorate the event, the Tortugas will be holding a press conference and Mayor’s Luncheon. Interested community members are invited to attend and celebrate this initiative with the Tortugas and their mascot Shelldon. The event begins at 12:00 pm on Thursday, November 16th.

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

Tortugas Seeking Nominations for Military Heroes Card Set

DAYTONA BEACH, FL – The Daytona Tortugas are seeking nominations for their first annual Military Heroes baseball card set. The card set will represent each branch of the military and honor those who are currently serving our country, veterans who have served in the past but are no longer active, and those who bravely fought for our country, but have since passed away.

The card set will be given away to the first 500 fans at Jackie Robinson Ballpark as part of our Military Appreciation Day on Saturday, May 27th. Nominations will be taken until Monday, May 15th.

Please email nominations to info@daytonatortugas.com

– Military Title
– First & Last Name
– Military Branch
– Years of Service
– Born
– Hometown
– Contact number person doing the nominating
– Email address person doing the nominating
– Short Bio/Resume (75 words or less)
– Photo (300 DPI, Minimum resolution of 750 pixels x 1050 pixels)

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

Tortugas Care Charity Foundation Issues First Grant

Daytona Beach, FL — The Tortugas Care Charity Foundation issued their first $500 grant to The Miracle League of Volusia County Tuesday afternoon.

The Tortugas Care Charity Foundation was founded in September of 2016 by the ownership group of the Daytona Tortugas, with the mission of enriching the lives of youth in the community through physical education and sports. With the Daytona Tortugas serving as an affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, a partnership with a local foundation impacting the lives of youth through baseball is the perfect marriage.

Miracle League of Voluisa County was formed in early 2015 and will give those with special needs the opportunity to play America’s favorite pastime. The city of New Smyrna Beach, Florida, has donated land for the future home of our local Miracle League; however, there is still a dire need to raise funds to officially break ground.

For more information on The Miracle League of Volusia County, and ways that you can help get 13,000 school-aged children to step up to the plate, please go to http://www.miracleleaguevolusia.org

And please like the Tortugas Care Charity Foundation Facebook page.

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

Tortugas Ownership Group Establishes Community Foundation

Daytona Beach, FL – The ownership group that acquired the Daytona Tortugas Advanced A Minor League Baseball Club last year is excited to start the new year giving back to the local community with its announcement today that it has established a charitable foundation designed to benefit youth sports and turtle conservation efforts in the community.

The Tortugas Care Charity Foundation was established with seed funding from team owners Reese Smith, Bob Fregolle and Rick French as a way of giving back to the local community that has supported baseball at Jackie Robinson Ballpark for more than a century.

Fregolle and French will serve on the board of trustees of the foundation, along with recently-appointed team President Ryan Keur. Current team Community Relations Director Kristen Alford will also serve as day-to-day Director of the foundation.

The Tortugas Care Charity Foundation is a 501(c)3 philanthropic organization that is committed to enriching the lives of youth in the local community through recreational opportunities — and in a nod to the Tortugas team name — contributing to sea turtle conservation efforts.

The foundation has already made a pledge to support the Miracle League of Volusia County and Tough Baseball, a local organization that uses athletics to teach and mentor children in the community.

During the 2017 baseball season, the team is planning jersey auctions to benefit the foundation and all 50/50 raffle proceeds will also fund foundation grants. The foundation also plans to host other fundraising events throughout the upcoming season in addition to an annual signature event that will be announced soon.

The ownership group will use its social media channels, radio partnerships, team newsletter and a portion of its print advertising budget to support the growth of the foundation, which will officially launch in January.

“The Tortugas Care Charity Foundation is something that Reese, Rick and I have wanted to establish from the moment we acquired the team because each of us has adopted Daytona Beach as our second home and want to give back to the local community that comes out and supports our organization year-round” said Fregolle.

Once the foundation officially launches in a few weeks, both grant applications and donations will be accepted at the Tortugas principal office at 110 East Orange Ave, Daytona Beach, FL 32114 and via their new Facebook Daytona Tortugas Care Charity Foundation Facebook page.

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

Michael Edwards Awarded FSL Scholarship

Daytona Beach, FL – The Daytona Tortugas, in conjunction with the Florida State League and the Miami Marlins, are proud to award the franchise’s second Florida State League Scholarship to Account Executive Michael Edwards.

Edwards, a native of nearby DeLand, is prepping for his junior year at the University of Florida.

“It means a lot [to win the scholarship]. I appreciate the opportunity to earn a scholarship, and winning it meant even more since it is the first scholarship I’ve ever been chosen for,” Edwards explained.

The Florida State League Scholarship Committee awarded twelve (12) $1,500 educational scholarships to applicants from each team in the league. The award is based both on financial need and a grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. Students eligible for this award must be an employee, or the child or grandchild of an employee, of the participating club and must be at least a high school junior by the 2016 fall term.

“I didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to gain experience [with the Tortugas]. Working in the front office of a sports team is what I eventually hope to be doing,” said Edwards, a sports management major, about the internship.

The Miami Marlins have sponsored this program for more than 16 years and have contributed over $160,000 to the Florida State League Program.

The Daytona Tortugas honored Edwards prior to a home game on July 25th at Radiology Associates Field at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. In addition, he was also mentioned during a pre-game ceremony at the Miami Marlins game on Sunday, July 31st, along with the other Florida State League team award winners.

Edwards, now back at school, enjoyed his summer in the FSL.

“It was great! I learned a good amount and got to do things that I never expected to be doing. It was definitely tiring at times, but working through those long homestands will help me in the long run!”

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

Cubs & PNC Bank Donate 5,300 Notebooks

The Daytona Cubs & PNC Bank have partnered to donate 5,300 notebooks to at-risk Volusia County second through fifth graders.

Daytona-Cubs-logoAs part of the The Daytona Cubs education program, the Cubs have teamed up with PNC Bank to provide notebooks to 5,300 at-risk second through fifth graders in Volusia County.

PNC Bank has joined forces with the Daytona Cubs in this initiative because the bank recognizes the role school readiness plays in the well-being of local children, their families and ultimately, the economy. Research shows the measurable impact school readiness has on the future success of at-risk children in school and life. By preparing the Daytona area’s youngest citizens for educational success, The Cubs and PNC Bank can help build a solid foundation for the future of this region.

Volusia-County-Schools-logo2Cubby, the Daytona Cubs team mascot, the Cubs staff members and PNC Bank representatives have already delivered the notebooks to 10 elementary schools, with the final three schools scheduled for the week of March 18th.

This article orginally appeared on the Daytona Cubs’ website