GLOVERSVILLE — Baseball season is finally underway, but Gloversville coach Mike DeMagistris has made sure his players have been learning about more than just the game.
Shortly after practices began, DeMagistris asked the JV and varsity players to bring in items to support the Gloversville Enlarged School District’s Backpack Program.
The players collected over $1,000 worth of items, to be provided to the nearly 50 families that participate in the district’s Backpack Program.
“There’s more to this than baseball. There’s more that goes on in this city and the country than just playing baseball,” DeMagistris said, noting some of the behind-the-scenes work that his players benefit from. “They’re fortunate enough to be here playing, but I wanted them to give back. We’ve got a Dugout Club that does a lot of fundraising for us as a community. They do a lot for the program and for Gloversville Athletics, so I thought it was great for our guys to give back.”
Some of the items donated include toilet paper, deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, body wash, soap and laundry detergent.
“Once the first batch of stuff came in, it just picked up all week,” DeMagistris said. “Every kid from varsity to JV was able to donate.”
The team’s efforts to help their community was also a service-learning opportunity, as players learned about some of the organizations that work on behalf of their community.
“We went down to the middle school, as a team, and put together bags of food for families in Gloversville,” said senior Alex Payne. “We were able to feed about 50 families and I think it’s really important for us to do things like that because we can be privileged sometimes and it’s good to help out others who are in need.”
“Not really,” Payne said on if he’d known about the Backpacks Program previously. “This was the first year that we did it and I think it’s good to learn about programs like this. I live a very good life and so does most of the team and it’s great to learn and help out others. It’s just nice to be able to help people.”
“This is education-based athletics, so we’re trying to educate our guys on more than just baseball,” DeMagistris said, who also added that money is raised every year to provide athletic scholarships to Gloversville students. “Once they leave high school they need to know what it takes to be a young man and hopefully this will open their eyes a little.”
Categories: -Sports-, High School Sports, Sports
