The Challenger Program Hits the Field Again this Spring
NEIRAD enilno edition
This spring high school buddies will be waking up early on Saturday mornings as the Challenger Program starts up again this May and runs until the end of school.
In 1999 the Challenger Program was brought to Darien by Charlie Santos-Buch, the current commissioner, who designed this program for children ages 5 to 18 who have physical or mental disabilities and want to play in Little League.
A central part of the Challenger program is the high school buddies, who attend the practices and the games to assist the kid’s activities that day and to build social relations with everyone involved in the program. Annmarie Medwid, one of the co-directors of the Challenger program said, “Since the majority of Challenger players require support to successfully participate, they are paired up with volunteer “buddies” who become their personal guides. The players need varying degrees of support, but whenever possible, they are encouraged to be independent, with “buddies” close by to lend a hand, when necessary.”
For the upcoming spring season, there are 26 players signed up for the program, but the astonishing number is the 35 buddies signed up to help and the additional 30 high schoolers on the wait list. With the large numbers of participants and buddies to help out, the Challenger Program has split the large group into two teams, determined by age. Senior Ian Sullivan said, “I love helping the kids, it’s also fun to see how the kids progress as the weeks go by.” Senior Stuart Locke is a veteran of the Challenger program and says the buddies “keep you trained and practiced” and enjoys having friends to run around with on his weekends.
The winter season just finished and ran from January to March and was held at the Town Hall gym on Saturday mornings. “During the winter season, the kid can choose which sports they want to play that day,” junior buddy Ryan Barthold said. The options consist of basketball, floor hockey, soccer, ring toss, throwing a football around and of course baseball. Every kid takes at least one turn at bat to try and smack a home run and gear up for the spring season.
During the spring season, the Challenger program places emphasis on Baseball. The philosophy during the spring season is to give all children the chance to play baseball in a setting that is fun and supportive. “A big part of this, for the players, is to experience the sense of belonging that comes with being a part of a team, as well as the spirit of friendly competition through games with other Challenger teams from neighboring towns,” said Medwid.
The Darien Challenger program is not the only one in the area; the Challenger team will have away games scheduled with Challenger teams in neighboring towns, including Stamford, Norwalk, Greenwich, Fairfield and Ridgefield/Wilton. During the games, the players are supported both at bat and in the field, by their "buddies” and of course score is not kept, because the idea is to have fun. “The buddies coach their players with batting, throwing, catching and running the bases and help keep them attentive to the game,” said Medwid.
In the upcoming weeks, the Challenger team will resume their season, which consists of playing at McGuane Park on the Challenger-dedicated field on Saturday and Sunday mornings. These sessions are either home games or practices, but above all the program is “all about acceptance, self-esteem, positive learning experiences and team spirit,” said Medwid.
