A month or so ago we told you about the Texas Bandits, a team of 10-year-olds from the Houston area where James had coached and taught for a number of years. The Bandits were one of his special teams and he tried to pass along important lessons in baseball and in life to the youngsters. The boys all loved James and wanted to honor and remember him by displaying his jersey during their games and wearing his initials on the uniform sleeves.
As we mentioned in our first post about the Bandits, the team got off to a great start and continued to play well during the year. Here’s an update we received from John Mann, their current coach and dad of Ethan, that we think you’ll enjoy.
“In a season that Ethan and his teammates had dedicated to Coach James, the boys made it all the way to the Perfect Game Super 25 10U National Championship. We lost today by two runs in the championship game but the boys held their heads high. Ethan played outstanding all week finishing by going 3 for 3 in the championship and playing flawlessly at short stop. The boys wore their blue jerseys that have coach James initials on the sleeve. Although they didn’t win, they played their tails off and are going home happy and proud.” We’re sure James would be too.
We’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating: here in our local communities there are lots of kids who would benefit from great coaching, great advice or just a shoulder to lean on, but who are missing out through no fault of their own. As part of our mission, the Play for James Foundation hopes to provide opportunities to many of them… and could use all the help we can get. If you are able to contribute, have time or special skills to volunteer, or just some ideas to share, we’d love to hear from you