14 • SUNDAY, MAY 9, 2021 • CAREGIVER
More than 275 Miracle League organizations
exist to help more than 200,000 children, adults
level is even greater knowing that our
athletes have missed more than everybody
else.”
The Miracle League was founded in 1999
and the first facility opened in April 2000 in
Conyers, Ga., to serve children and adults
with mental and physical disabilities. According
to the rules, everyone bats once an
inning, all players are safe on the bases and
score a run before the inning is over — and
everyone wins. Community volunteers act
as buddies to assist the players, the playing
surface itself is made of cushioned rubber
and completely level and the dugouts are
wheelchair accessible.
There are now more than 275 Miracle
League organizations across the United
States, Puerto Rico, Canada and Australia,
serving more than 200,000 children and
adults.
In Western Pennsylvania, Miracle League
fields exist in a number of locations including
Murrysville, Cranberry, South Hills and
the Laurel Highlands.
Magulick decided to start a league in
Moon Township in 2017 after his son, Luke,
was born with a rare genetic disorder called
4P Minus. A lifelong hockey player, Magulick
said he and his wife couldn’t fathom the
thought of Luke never playing a team sport.
With renovations beginning at Moon
Park, he found the perfect opportunity to
bring a Miracle League closer to home so
that families like his didn’t have to travel an
hour for their kids to play baseball and they
could have a place with disability-friendly
playgrounds and restrooms.
The restrooms at the Moon location have
stalls that fit wheelchairs, multiple level
sinks and hand-wave technology to open
doors. They also have family restrooms with
shower facilities and adult changing tables.
“A lot of families would say part of the
reason they don’t go out in the community
is because it’s too difficult to use the restroom
or, our son, he’s not potty trained
and he may never be potty trained, and
when they get older it’s more difficult. They
don’t fit on baby changing tables and some
aren’t strong enough to stand. And there’s
no dignity changing in the back of an SUV.
They saw that we’re adding that and became
more excited.”
They’re also in the process of raising
money to build a 9,500-square-foot custom
playground that will have a space theme
and be fully accessible to kids with special
needs.
The largest Miracle League field currently
in the region is located in Murrysville
and opened in 2012. Funded in part by
Pirates Charities, which supports eight
Miracle League organizations both here and
in Florida, the facility includes an accessible
basketball court, picnic pavilion and
fitness trail. They also have two different
divisions, including one for players with
more advanced skills in which they keep
score but not individual statistics.
Board members there realized last April
that with the shutdown and coronavirus
concerns they weren’t going to be able to
have a spring season, co-founder Harold
Hicks said.
For many of the 185 players between the
ages of 5 and 71 that typically participate in
the spring, it was heartbreaking.
“The kids were constantly contacting me
asking, ‘Can we do summer?’ and then ‘Can
we do fall?” Hicks said. “And then winter
came, and we had a pretty decent winter, so
the kids were saying, ‘Can we go play now?’”
There, they’ll finally be playing ball again
in Murrysville beginning on June 5, and the
excitement level is high, Hicks said.
“Some of them are posting things on Facebook
challenging each other who’s going to
hit the most home runs,” he said. “We may
be more cautiously excited with the different
strains (of covid-19) that keep popping
up. We’re sure (we’re going to play), but
not absolutely sure. But we’ve talked about
how we’re going to handle sterilization,
and we’ll have volunteers making sure each
player sanitizes their hands before putting
on a helmet or touching a bat. We’re going
to be safe and try to spread out as much as
we can.”
The municipality will also have some restrictions
as well, he said. For instance, the
water fountains won’t be turned on, nor will
the spray misters. They also won’t be able
to grill hamburgers and hot dogs, but one
of their board members has already volunteered
to provide meals in to-go containers.
At the Miracle League of Pennsylvania’s
Laurel Highlands, which typically registers
75 to 80 players for a season, baseball
returns beginning June 6. The decision
to cancel last year’s season came in late
March, chairperson Christine Eckert said.
Although it was unfortunate, the decision
was easy because the safety of the athletes
is paramount.
When the board began to discuss returning
to play this year, she said, they decided
to survey their families to see if they would
How to help
Miracle League organizations are
always looking for volunteers, and many
will need more than usual this year in
order to help meet safety protocols.
If you’d like to get involved, visit each
organization’s individual website or
Facebook page for information.
For a list of area organizations and
their websites, visit https://www.
mlb.com/pirates/community/miracle
league-fields.
consider playing under established guidelines
to protect the safety of all involved.
“It was an overwhelming yes,” she said.“It was, ‘Oh my gosh, we need to get back,
my kid’s been asking all year.’ There was
no hesitation.”
They’ll be extending the dugouts this year
to allow for social distancing, implementing
greater distancing on the field and having
temperature checks before entry to the
playing area. They’re also asking for the
first time that families consider bringing
their own buddy versus having a volunteer.
“Like other ball leagues, we want families
to be able to sit there and watch their
child playing ball,” she said. “Before the
pandemic, we had some families that were
positively overwhelmed by the thought of,
‘I’m sitting here watching my child, who I
never thought could play a sport, play ball.’
We’ve always encouraged that. So that’s
different this year. And it’s just because
of safety.”
The Moon Township League will open
play on May 15 and run through the end of
July. They also plan to have a short fall season,
and beginning in June the field will be
used seven days a week by different camps,organizations and homes. This year, Magulick
said, they’ll have rolling registration so
that athletes can sign up whenever they’d
like or feel comfortable.
“Some families still aren’t going to feel
comfortable and we understand and respect
that, but as opposed to telling parents what
they can’t do, we wanted to make sure parents
have a choice,” he said. “If you feel
comfortable and think it’s going to benefit
your child, here’s the opportunity. If not,
come when you do feel comfortable. We’ll
be here forever, hopefully.”
Karen Price is a Tribune-Review contributing writer.
COURTESY OF ANDREW BAILEY
The Miracle League of Moon Township will give athletes with special needs the
opportunity to play baseball safely.