One of the important projects the Oriole Advocates have undertaken is the Cardboard to LeatherTM program (affectionately called C2LTM),
whereby good, used baseball and softball equipment is provided to underprivileged
youth in developing countries, including Afghanistan, Aruba, Belgrade, Belize, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Nicaragua. In 2008, Oriole third baseman Melvin Mora served as spokesperson for C2LTM and, in conjunction with the Melvin Mora Foundation, the Oriole Advocates shipped thousands of pieces of equipment to Venezuela.
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HISTORY
The Cardboard to LeatherTM program
was inspired by an article by Baltimore Sun sportswriter John Eisenberg
that appeared in The Baltimore Sun in 1992. Eisenberg traveled to the
Dominican Republic on an unrelated assignment. While there, he observed
kids playing baseball with makeshift equipment: tree limbs for bats,
and cardboard wrapped with tape for gloves. He decided to write about
what he saw. After reading Eisenberg's article, the Oriole Advocates
decided to do something to get decent equipment to the kids.
Since
the program started, the Oriole Advocates have distributed over 50 tons
of equipment. Little Leagues, local recreation departments, individual
baseball fans, and various other groups donate equipment throughout the
year, in addition to the collections held at Camden Yards and other
baseball stadiums. The gear is distributed, based on the greatest
need, to schools, orphanages, community groups, and hospitals. The
material is owned by the group, not distributed to individuals; that
way, the equipment can be shared, and more kids get an opportunity to
use it.
Financial donations, annual raffles, and silent auctions held throughout the year help defray the costs of storage and shipment of the collected equipment.
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SPONSORS
In summer 2008, C2LTM welcomed Legg Mason as a new sponsor. This fine corporation provided the C2LTM program with a generous grant that went a long way toward helping ship donated equipment to deserving children. Additionally, Legg Mason collected C2LTM donations from its workforce and Legg Mason personnel helped the Advocates with their 2008 C2LTM collection at Camden Yards, which turned out to be one of the most successful, fruitful collections ever!
Major League Baseball's Baseball Tomorrow Fund has provided support to C2LTM for the last several years, contributing to the Oriole Advocates ability to maintain this great program year after year.
PARTNERSHIPS
The C2LTM program is fortunate to have partnerships with the following:
- Runners Inc. has, for many years now, been very generous and accommodating with donating storage space for collected equipment. This generosity has allowed the C2LTM program to be able to accept all donations.
- The young men and women of the Freestate ChalleNGe Academy assist the C2LTM program each year with the inventorying and packing of equipment for shipment. This is a lot of work! Not only must the equipment be packed, but all equipment must be counted and the contents of each box must be clearly identified to pass a customs inspection. The Academy is a tuition-free program which offers at-risk adolescents, 16 to 18 years old, an opportunity to change their future in many ways, culminating with the opportunity to obtain a Maryland High School Diploma. The Academy is endorsed by the State of Maryland and is in a cooperative agreement between with the Maryland National Guard and the National Guard Bureau.
- Baseball And Sofball Essential Skills (BASES) Training Facility (formerly Sandlot-BWI Baseball and Softball Training Facility) and the Harford Sandlot Academy are local area collection points for the C2LTM annual campaign. The mission of these facilities is to provide high-quality individualized training for local athletes that will help them grow to be productive members of the community and to be successful in life. Skills training specific to their sport and the atmosphere in which that training is administered is the key to the success of these facilities.
- Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) - Catonsville Campus baseball program has collected equipment for C2LTM since 2007. (See the photo album of the 2008 C2LTM program distribution in Nicaragua to see some donated CCBC Cardinals uniforms!) CCBC Catonsville also hosts several weekends of high school baseball during the fall where equipment is collected. The Oriole Advocates attended several CCBC sports camps between December and March 2008 and talked to participants about the C2LTM program; a collection drive was held on February 1, 2009.
- Blue Ridge Cable 11 in Lancaster, PA in July 2009 aired a story about the C2L
program (click here to see the story), interviewing the Oriole Advocates President and C2L Chairman. Two collection boxes are located in the Blue Ridge Cable 11 station and the station is offering incentives to anyone who drops off equipment.
- B2B Baseball and Softball Academy in Manheim, PA, is partnering with the the C2L program by having collection boxes at their facility on a year-round basis and encouraging the donation of equipment.
The Oriole Advocates are thrilled and proud to be associated with and look forward to continuing our association with all our sponsors and partners!
HIGHLIGHTS
The July 14, 2007 C2LTM collection at Camden Yards and the C2LTM program were highlighted in the Baltimore sports publication, PressBox. (See the article online: Nicaraguan Youths Will Enjoy Benefits From Latino Night.) In November of that year, the Oriole Advocates sent a large shipment of equipment to Nicaragua. The equipment included: 500 bats, 850 baseballs, 210 gloves, 576 helmets, 866 uniform shirts, 797 uniform pants, 140 catcher's masks and helmets, 59 chest protectors, along with bases, pitcher's rubbers, trophies, shin guards, umpire equipment, and other miscellaneous baseball equipment. Bob Harden, 2007 C2LTM Committee Chairman, and his wife, Shirley, traveled to Nicaragua in January 2008 to represent the Oriole Advocates as the equipment was distributed. The equipment was divided, based on need, among 90 little league teams. The distributions were held primarily in rural areas in central and northern Nicaragua and directly benefited 1,800 children ranging in age from 6 to 18.
The distributions were accompanied by ceremonies at baseball fields with bleachers filled with children and parents; local mayors and government officials all took part in the ceremonies. The smiles on the children's faces and the warm gratitude of the adults and children alike were overwhelming and certainly validated the efforts of the Oriole Advocates, the C2LTM program, and everyone who donated equipment, time, or money to the program. An article about the distributions in Nicaragua appeared on MLB.com. Additionally, in July 2008 Orioles Magazine featured an article about C2LTM that also mentioned the distributions in Nicaragua. To see a photo album of the distributions, click here.
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In
November 2008, Major League Baseball's (MLB) Baseball Tomorrow Fund
(BTF) published an article reviewing the 2008 BTF/MLB Equipment Day
collections. The article specifically highlighted the exceptional
collection done by the Oriole Advocates:
One
of the most impressive showings was, for the second straight year, the
Orioles. Baltimore fans came out in droves and donated approximately
8,500 items and over $6,000 to benefit the Oriole Advocates. These
collection results are a true testament to the growth of the Equipment
Day initiative. In 2005, the combined total for all of the
participating clubs was 4,374 items. Now, just three seasons later, the
Orioles almost single-handedly doubled that total.
To read the entire article, click here.
The
Summer 2007 edition of Messenger Courier World magazine -- the official
magazine of the Messenger Courier Association of the Americas (MCAA),
of which Runners Inc. is a member -- spotlighted a member of the Oriole
Advocates for his contribution to C2LTM.
Click here to read the article.
The C2LTM
program continues to benefit from Maryland youths who hold collections
in conjunction with their Bar Mitzvah or birthday and Eagle Scouts
working toward merit badges. Below is a picture of the result of one
such C2LTM collection
conducted in the summer of 2007 by Maryland Eagle Scout Keith Mitchell. Impressive!
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C2LTMTri-fold Flyer
Print the files on the right to make your own C2LTM tri-fold flyer. First, print the file on the top. Then, take that printout and flip it around so that you can print the second part of the flyer (the file on the bottom) on the back of what you just printed. Position the part of the flyer with the C2LTM
logo, picture of glove/bat/balls, and the Oriole Advocates logos so
that it is closest to the paper feeder. Then, print the file on the bottom. Now, fold to make your own C2LTM tri-fold flyer!
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To find out more information on donating equipment, you can contact
the Cardboard to LetherTM Committee
at C2L @ orioleadvocates.org or oadvocates @ orioleadvocates.org, or you can send mail to the postal address below:
The
Oriole Advocates
Attn: Cardboard to LeatherTM Committee
P.O. Box 2295
Baltimore, MD, 21203-2295
NOTE: Cardboard to LeatherTM
is a Trademark of The Oriole Advocates, Inc. Please contact The Oriole
Advocates for information on using the Cardboard to LeatherTM name.
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