KANSAS CITY – A local kid who grew up rooting for the Royals, Carter Jensen felt all the love from Kansas City fans when he made his debut for his hometown team on Sept. 2. Now that it’s the offseason, he views it as time to reciprocate that love back to the community.
When the Royals approached Jensen about helping out with their Thanksgiving event at the Urban Youth Academy last week, he was all in.
“Any opportunity I have to go do something like that, go to a charity event like that, I’ll take it,” Jensen said. “I’ll take it every time. I’m blessed to be in my situation and the spot I’m in, and I feel like I would be doing a disservice, like it would be selfish of me, to not give back to the community. And with saying that, it doesn’t ever feel like a drag or like I had to do it to check a box off. I find a lot of joy and happiness in all of it. The smiles are worth it enough. If I can help make somebody’s day better, help make somebody’s week better, that’s my goal.
“At the end of the day, the people in Kansas City are super passionate about sports – about the Royals and Chiefs. And they show up for the players when the players are in season. I feel like now that I’m in the offseason, it’s my way of being able to show up for the people who support us.”
The Royals and Price Chopper have been giving out turkeys and holiday meals at the UYA for several years, but last Friday was their first “Books and Birds” Thanksgiving drive-through giveaway for local families. The community event combined food, literacy and local partnership to support Kansas City families.
“I think our partners understood there’s a need this year,” said Donease Smith, executive director of administration at the UYA. “And they stepped up and decided that we were going to help families. Literacy is a big part of the work we do, too, so it became books and birds.”
Last Wednesday, Royals associates convened at the UYA to pack holiday boxes, filling them with Thanksgiving staples like stuffing, canned vegetables, cranberry sauce and dessert mixes. Boxes also included fresh produce provided by C&C Produce, Royals swag and three children’s books that helped promote the organization’s efforts to increase literacy in students across the Kansas City area. Frozen turkeys, provided by Wholesale Batteries, were organized in preparation of the drive-through.
On Friday, Jensen and volunteers were there to hand all of that out. The Royals opened this event up to any family in need; there was no registration required. Some families were already connected to the UYA, while others were able to learn about the resources available there beyond just baseball and softball.
“Bat and ball is one of our pillars, obviously, but community is also a pillar,” Smith said. “The families that we serve each day, and the kids that we see, I think it’s important to be able to say, ‘We feel that you’re important beyond bat and ball.’
"When we look at the community we’re in, we see the challenges. If we can play a small part in helping a family eat during this season, or a kid learn to play the great games of baseball and softball, we’re excited to be able to do that and help youth develop. We want them to know that when they come here, they have access to a safe space and they’re going to learn a lot. And it’s not going to cost them anything.”
With the drive-through being first-come, first-served, the Royals didn’t quite know what the turnout would be. But cars started lining up at noon CT for a 3 p.m. start, and it took about 90 minutes for the Royals to hand out 300 turkeys and 250 holiday boxes (each family got one of each).
Having Jensen there was an added bonus for the Royals and the families who showed up, some of which had young fans in the back seat surprised to see the catcher right there in front of them.
“There wasn’t a person in line who didn’t have a smile on their face when we handed everything out,” Jensen said.
And to do it at the UYA was even better for Jensen, who spent a lot of time there in high school as part of the Royals’ scout teams. Now he’s there as a big leaguer helping fans and young players – and not just during baseball season.
“I basically grew up at the Urban Youth Academy in high school once I made the team,” Jensen said. “Even if we weren’t playing a game, I was there trying to find cage time, stuff like that. To be able to come back and help out with the stuff that they’re doing, it’s special.”