What Danny Mendoza started as small sports camps back in 2008 when he found out his cousin was living in a car has now led to one of MLB Together’s community partnerships.
Mendoza is the founder of Foster Love, a nonprofit organization created when he was 16 that aims to provide kids in the foster care system support through educational scholarships and supplemental support to local agencies.
For the second year in a row, more than 40 MLB interns helped build and decorate 110 birthday packages as part of the “Birthday in a Box” program.
“It’s super cool to see … a company to give back,” Mendoza said. “Especially with the interns, they’re learning that not only to get to work for a cool company, we're also instilling the value of giving back.”
Filled with small baseballs and bracelets, balloons, stickers and gift cards among other birthday party supplies, the boxes will be delivered to children at Catholic Guardian Services in New York.
“Foster kids matter,” Mendoza said. “At the end of the day, it’s a huge impact. Everyone just takes in a small responsibility and collectively, that’s really how you move mountains.”
With MLB’s help, the organization has helped more than one million youth in the foster care system.
The event was a combined effort with MLB Together, the league’s platform to promote and invite employees and fans to get involved in their communities.
Through their guiding principles, including youth involvement, inclusion, domestic and physical safety as well as health research and resources, MLB Together hosts yearly events where interns have the opportunity to join.
For John Schwarz, a senior manager in the community affairs department, it is important to look for partnerships with organizations that have the same principles as MLB.
“Part of MLB Together is giving back and Foster Love encapsulates that as well,” Schwarz said. “Using the power of sport to serve your community. Today, the interns are getting a nice snapshot of that.”
These types of events give interns like Alexandra Rosen the opportunity to be part of MLB’s culture.
“It was super fun,” Rosen said. “And [we] feel good about giving back and what we were doing.”
As a content intern in this year’s class, she has been attending events that allow interns to network and meet peers across departments.
“I was definitely happy to do it, happy to be there," Rosen said, "[To] get to know some other interns and do a little creativity in the middle of my day was kind of fun.”
Rosen also likes to learn more about the company through these types of gatherings.
“We’re here to learn, grow and be part of MLB,” she said. “To embrace the culture here and be a part of something is really a great opportunity, not just to advance your career but also help, give back, do something fun and enjoy the full experience of being an intern at MLB.”