BaseBall and CuBa? A way to show children options and choices in life On April 14, 17 of the East Bay’s finest baseball players ages 12-13, returned from an all-expense paid sports-trip to Cuba, funded by the Wheelhouse Academy of Baseball in Richmond. The Academy raised over $15,000 to fund this trip in an attempt to give lower income kids the chance to play ‘ball’ with the Cuban community. “Our goal was to expose kids to a different culture. Not only to the way they play baseball differently but to the way they live,” said Wheelhouse Academy founder and director David Gaskins. Over 85 players tried out for the opportunity, 32 were selected to undergo an intensive training program and 17 were chosen to go on the trip. “A lot of our kids come from low income families and areas,” said Gaskins. “We wanted to make sure it wasn’t just families who could afford it that could go, but the kids who earned it by working hard and being on the field,” said Gaskins. 26 MARKETPLACEcontracosta.com August 2016 By Jade Shojaee “For a lot of our kids, it was their first time outside of their community. We wanted to take them to experience a different culture to let them know that there’s a whole world out there and you do have options, and you do have choices in your life.” Gaskins started the Wheelhouse Academy four years ago with the hopes of giving financially disadvantaged youth the training to make them competitive baseball players in time for college recruitment. “I really fell in love with youth sports and the idea of learning and mastering a craft like baseball,” said Gaskins who watched his son’s little league team lose games to wealthier teams with unlikely form and technique. “I just started to realize that kids who didn’t really have access to that level of pro-training were at a disadvantage as far as getting college scholarships. By the time both of those groups get recruited the wealthier kids have better access.”
Contra Costa Marketplace - Aug 2016
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