Fun at the ballpark

Prince George Adult Challenger Baseball reunites after long two year hiatus

Jul 8, 2021 | 5:58 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – The Prince George Challenger Baseball Adult Team has had a tough couple of years throughout the pandemic, having had this season as well as last season cancelled due to COVID-19.

Not only have they been without baseball for two years, but they also haven’t been able to see their fellow players and coaches.

Last night, however, that all changed as they held a practice, so they were able to have some sort of social interaction.

“There really hasn’t been a season, so everyone is really excited to be here tonight,” said Caroline Parker, Co-Coach of Challenger Baseball. “It’s the first time in about two years that they’ve seen each other.”

For the members of the team, it was just good to get back and get those social interactions.

“Sometimes we’ll have three or four players out on second base just talking and having a really good time and they don’t wanna leave and that’s absolutely fine,” says Parker. “It’s basically about socializing and just being part of a team. That’s really important for those guys [be]cause they don’t really get that chance.”

This also became an opportunity for something to do because, during this pandemic, coming together has been something that was hard to come by.

“That social interaction has been very difficult, says Shirley Skelding,” Co-Coach of Challenger Baseball. “They don’t understand why they can’t see their friends and day after day we have to figure out something to do.”

And if it wasn’t apparent how much these athletes missed the game, their coaches and their teammates, they let us know when we spoke with them.

“It’s really happy,” says Amy, player for Challenger Baseball. “I haven’t really seen them that much [be]cause of COVID, but it’s really nice to see my friends again, it’s awesome. It’s really fun [be]cause I’ve done it before, I’ve played lots of times and it was really fun [be]cause of memories of my coach and I love her so much and she’s the best.”

Challenger Baseball would like to thank the Jays Care Foundation for providing them with all the gear and equipment that they use. They also noted that there will be a Zoom meeting in the future along with a special package delivered to every player.