Major League Baseball announced the winners of the 2017 Honorary Bat Girl contest, which recognizes baseball fans who have been affected by breast cancer and who demonstrate a commitment to supporting the fight against the disease. Winners have been selected to represent each of the 30 MLB Clubs and will be recognized on-field at Major League ballparks on Sunday, May 14.
 
Julie Everett was selected as the Indians Honorary Bat Girl and will throw out the ceremonial first pitch at Sunday's game. Everett is a native of Willowick and now resides in Newbury. She has been a huge Tribe fan her whole life and attends every Tribe Home Opener.
 
Everett braved a double mastectomy, multiple rounds of chemotherapy and radiation after receiving a Stage 3 Breast Cancer diagnosis in August 2011. She has also had surgery to remove her thyroid, cervix, uterus and ovaries. Through her entire battle, she has maintained a healthy sense of humor according to her husband, who nominated her. 
 
After her initial treatment, Everett became a champion for breast cancer patients. She became an advocate for the AreYouDense organization, which lobbies to require doctors to notify a patient if they have dense breast tissue and subsequently offer an MRI or ultrasound. More recently, she helped to organize a fundraiser that raised over $3,000 for the Stefanie Spielman Fund. She also continues to counsel friends and strangers who are dealing with breast cancer. 
 
The Honorary Bat Girl program was introduced in 2009 to raise additional awareness and support for the annual "Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer" initiative celebrated on Mother's Day.
 
In eight years, thousands of unique testimonials have been submitted and more than 3 million fan votes have been cast. Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer is a Major League Baseball initiative supported by MLB charitable partners Stand Up To Cancer and Susan G. Komen. This initiative raises awareness about the breast cancer cause, while also raising funds to support breast cancer research.