FLCC Baseball Team Spends Weekend with Youth Groups at Ontario ARC

CANANDAIGUA – 'Tis the season of giving. Just recently, the Finger Lakes CC baseball coaching staff and players took time away from their offseason training schedule to pay a visit to the Ontario ARC (located in Canandaigua) – a foundation committed to providing services that best suit individuals with intellectual and development disabilities.

Lakers soon to be second-year head coach Sean Marren and his assistant coaching staff – Jimmy Habecker, Nick Amatulli, Travis Lisena, and Mike Zollweg – are a group of quality individuals who strongly believe in giving back to the community. On the weekend of December 7th, these gentlemen, along with their current roster of players – a roster filled with leaders and quality people – acted as a cohesive group away from the diamond.

On the 7th, which was a Friday, the Lakers set out on a two-day voyage to the ARC where they would begin a weekend full of activities. On Friday night, they partook in video game competitions with the ARC's recreational departments youth group. Together, the coaches and athletes formed teams with the youth where they would work towards one goal – defeating their opponent in a Nintendo Wii Tournament! Now, not all involved would walk away victorious upon the conclusion of the competitive tournament – but when looking at the picture – every single human present did indeed walk away as winners – in life that is. The competition acted as a bonding agent. As the Lakers baseball organization showed its overwhelming support for being a huge fan of the ARC and its entire organization, it would be both entities that would walk away as a team at heart.

The fun didn't stop on the 7th. It continued into the following day. On Saturday the 8th, the FLCC baseball team members came back for another day of team bonding. During that day, they spent time hanging with children in the ARC's Kid's Day Program. With the children, they again worked together as a cohesive group – but this time it didn't come in a competitive form. The group of kids would work hand-in-hand with the coaches and players on various projects and assignments. It was a win-win atmosphere for everyone. The Lakers and the children involved in Kid's Day showed great team continuity as they unionized and came together to complete the tasks at hand. As a collective group, everyone on hand wore smiles on their faces all day long. In conjunction with the bright smiles, friendships and relationships were formed between both sides.

Regardless of any disability that a child may have, that child and all children for that matter will always remain the wave of society's future. These children visited by the Finger Lakes CC baseball team have just as much a future ahead of them as any other child their age would have. They are smart, creative, and loving. They, just like anyone else, want to be part of something – they want to be included – and they too have dreams, goals, and aspirations. In order for these kids to become leaders and mentors, they, just like anyone else in society, must first be led. A simple gesture such as this one where the entire Lakers baseball team joined together in conjunction with these children for a period of bonding is what life is truly about. Children are great at retaining fond memories. Kid's Day delivered just that – fond, warm memories. The happiness that these kids revealed during their time spent with the Lakers illumed the entire facility at the ARC.

With Marren, his staff, and players all agreeing just how much they thoroughly enjoyed spending quality time with these children, they are already planning on taking a return route back to the ARC in the future for further team bonding sessions with this group. The ARC and these children are already anticipating the Lakers next visit.

It is the goal of the ARC to establish a support system that encourages independence, productivity, and integration amongst individuals with disabilities. The ARC, on a daily basis, strives to create opportunities for these people. For a more in-depth analysis on the functions of the ARC, please visit their website located at the following link – http://www.ontarioarc.org/.