The Miracle League of San Francisco Peninsula is Honored as a Welcoming Star
Redwood City Together is pleased to award the 20th Welcoming Star Award to The Miracle League of San Francisco Peninsula. Ilana Winawer, Scott Morton, and Gary Morton (President, Vice-President, and Founder/Treasurer, respectively) received the award at the virtual Redwood City Council meeting on November 23, 2020.
The mission of The Miracle League of San Francisco Peninsula is to provide a community where people of all abilities can interact and learn about one another. Every player is assigned a buddy, a youth or adult volunteer, to support, protect, and assist them in whatever they need during the game. The Miracle League has completed three seasons so far, and they were preparing for their fourth before COVID hit. While they currently cannot hold games, they just launched a pen pal program to keep their players and buddies connected. Ultimately, The Miracle League provides an environment where children and adults of all abilities can build a community that revolves around inclusivity, diversity, and friendship.
The biggest long-term impact the Miracle League has on the community are the relationships that are built between the buddies and players. At the beginning of every season, many buddies are a little hesitant pushing a wheelchair or helping their player hit a ball, but by the end of the season the buddies really feel comfortable interacting with all the players, and they have formed a real connection with their player. It is important to provide a community where people of all abilities can interact and learn about one another. Hopefully, the buddies apply the lessons they have learned from helping their Miracle League players to make the world around them more inclusive. The Miracle League also hopes that the players discover that they live in a world where people really care about them. The League wants to share the message that every person who participates in the program realizes that humans are not as different as we think and that when people come together as a community, amazing things can happen.
Community members can support the Miracle League of San Francisco by signing up as a player or a buddy, signing up for their mailing list or by donating. All of these can be done on their website (https://www.miracleleaguesfpen.com/).