Little League opening ceremonies

Spring is in the air and the weather could not have been better for such an event. Vice President of little league softball, Carrie Storm, invited us out to enjoy opening ceremonies. It was heart warming to see all the families involved in this community of little leaguers. I could not help but smile from ear to ear as all the kids strutted on to the field in their vibrant uniforms! The matching hair bows and baseball caps were absolute perfection and I was quite impressed.

The ceremonies began with Ema and Tyler Gurley leading us all in the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by Mario Medina singing the "National Anthem." Samantha and Tim Storm Jr. then recited the player pledge. Kevin Caudle graced the crowd with prayer before the first pitches were thrown. Throwing the baseball pitch was Matt Dileo and Michelle Vance, who threw for softball. Catchers were Turtle Tompson and Jennassa Jeffus. Being my first time at this event, I was thoroughly impressed with the ceremonial details. Hearing everyone join in while the little leaguers sang, "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" gave me goosebumps and had me wanting a ballpark hot dog.

While sitting in the stands, I had the pleasure of meeting Mark Denny who had been involved in little league all his life. He and his wife Erica now have three of their own children (Levi, Xavier and William) involved in the league. Talk about carrying on a tradition. They were kind enough to give me a run down and correct some of my lingo. I left the stands to go mingle and the cutest girls I have ever seen caught my eye with their sparkling red white and blue hairbows. Minor Bulldogs is a team of 12 girls (ages 7-9), managed by Josh Tickenoff. It is his first year managing but his daughter Claire is showing him the ropes, as this is her third year playing. Their team mom Jenna Collins has them all decked out from head to toe in perfectly coordinated uniforms and those smiles are contagious! It certainly shows the time and effort put in by everyone from kids to adults, and I love it.

After the ceremonies, kids scattered to participate in the hit-a-thon. Being the largest fundraiser the league has, it is taken seriously. The winner Tyler Gurley is given the honor of throwing the opening pitch for the Lancaster Jethawks on April 28. Go Tyler!

It would take two pages to list all of the sponsors that little league has, so I will just say thank you to Tehachapi businesses for all the contributions and support. Also a huge thanks to all the people putting in time, effort and love to make sure these kids have such a great time playing ball. Just another reason I love this town.