To help kick off the 24th season of Junior Giants, Giants fans are invited to support the 25,000 kids who play in one of the 90 leagues by donating to the Junior Giants Glove Drive presented by Bank of America on Saturday, May 13, 2017 at AT&T Park when the Giants face the Reds at 1:05 p.m.
Fans who donate a new or gently used baseball glove or make a $10 donation to the Giants Community Fund will receive a Gold Glove pin. Donors who give $20 will receive a limited edition Hunter Pence Bobblehead. Volunteers will be at all AT&T Park gates collecting donations prior to the game and inside the ballpark at the Community Clubhouse on the Promenade Level. Fans who are unable to make the game but still want to participate can donate online through jrgiants.org. In 2016, the Junior Giants Glove Drive raised over $33,000 at the ballpark and received more than 700 gloves, which ensured that every child in the program had a glove of his or her own.
Junior Giants, presented by Bank of America, is the flagship program of the Giants Community Fund. The Giants Community Fund hosts the Glove Drive to directly benefit Junior Giants by providing needed equipment to enable children throughout Northern California, Oregon and Nevada to play ball during the summer months. Of the 25,000 participating in Junior Giants, more than 14,000 of these youth do not have their own glove. Sixty-eight percent of players who participate in this free, noncompetitive baseball program are on free and reduced school lunch programs.
This year marks the thirteenth season that Major League Baseball's Baseball Tomorrow Fund has teamed up with Major League Baseball Clubs to supplement their existing equipment collection programs and help facilitate the creation of new programs. In conjunction with the Junior Giants Glove Drive, the Baseball Tomorrow Fund will award a $5,000 grant to the San Bruno Junior Giants league to purchase new equipment.
Junior Giants uses baseball as a forum to teach kids about confidence, integrity, leadership and teamwork, enabling them to make informed and productive decisions within their lives. There are more than 6,000 volunteer coaches, team parents and commissioners who work to ensure that kids in their communities have the opportunity to play baseball.
WHO: Giants Community Fund
WHAT: 2017 Junior Giants Glove Drive presented by Bank of America
WHEN: Saturday, May 13, 2017, Glove Drive begins at 10:30 a.m. (Giants vs. Reds at 1:05 p.m.)
WHERE: AT&T Park (Collections will be accepted at all gates and the Community Clubhouse on the Promenade Level)
WHY: Help the Giants Community Fund provide gloves to thousands of children, enabling them to play baseball while empowering them with life skills.
INFO: For more information or to make a donation visit jrgiants.org
The Giants Community Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, collaborates with the San Francisco Giants by using baseball as a forum to encourage underserved youth and their families to live healthy, productive lives. The Fund supports Junior Giants leagues throughout Northern California, Nevada and Oregon and provides assistance to targeted community initiatives in the areas of education, health and violence prevention. Since its inception in 1991, the Fund has donated more than $24 million to community programs.