From Aug. 5-8, 2009, the Turn 2 Foundation partnered with the City of Kalamazoo Parks and Recreation Department to host the Sixth Annual Turn 2 Foundation Kalamazoo Baseball Clinic at Mayor's Riverfront Park.

This annual, four-day clinic is open to more than 100 boys and girls ages 8 to 13 residing in the West Michigan area, and is free for all participants. The program focuses on baseball fundamentals, as well as important life skills and lessons for use on and off the field. Focus is placed on Derek Jeter's 10 Life Lesson's which are taken from his New York Times bestselling book, The Life You Imagine. These lessons make up the central component of the Turn 2 Foundation curriculum.

Throughout the clinic, participants were led through multiple baseball skill stations by a group of 14 hand-picked local coaches. The stations focused on teaching and reinforcing the fundamentals of hitting, fielding, throwing, pitching and baserunning. Each station also highlighted some of Derek's 10 Life Lessons including Set Your Goals High, Don't Be Afraid to Fail, Find the Right Role Models and Think Before You Act.

The highlight of the clinic came on Friday when former New York Yankees infielder, one of Derek's teammates during the Yankees 1998 World Series Championship season, Homer Bush spoke to the children about his journey of becoming a professional athlete. Homer specifically focused on the academic work he put in during his high school days that afforded him the opportunity to achieve his goals. He surprised the participants when he told them that his original dream was to become a professional football player. Homer elaborated on how he continued to apply his work ethic to the game of baseball as well as to his life outside of sports. The children left with a better understanding of how working hard in the classroom and on the field will allow them to flourish in all areas of their lives.

The Turn 2 Clinic Banquet, held on the clinic's final day, was unfortunately cut short due to extreme weather. Although Mother Nature did not cooperate, each child was still able to pick up a goodie bag with gifts from the Turn 2 Foundation and its supporters, as well as an individual certificate that recognized each child for his or her effort.

The Turn 2 Foundation would like to extend a special thank-you to Scott's Collectibles, Stevenson's Side Track Ice Cream and everyone involved in this year's Clinic. We are looking forward to the Seventh Annual Kalamazoo Baseball Clinic in August 2010!