Celebrities to support the Boys & Girls Club at Jackie Robinson tribute
The Boys & Girls Club of Cairo-Grady County, along with representatives from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Boys & Girls Club of America, has recently confirmed the appearance of esteemed celebrity guests as it makes preparations to host one of its most highly anticipated fundraising events of the year.
Welcoming over 300 guests, the two-day event, a “Diamond Affair,” is set for March 15-16 and will honor hometown hero Jackie Robinson, first ever African American to play in Major League Baseball.
The guests of honor include Jackie Robinson’s daughter, Sharon Robinson; five-time Olympic champion, Teresa Edwards; World Champion boxer, Evander Holyfield; American professional baseball outfielder, Willie C. Harris; and former defensive end for the Miami Dolphins, William Thomas (Bill) Stanfill.
Additional notable personalities and baseball teams, such as the Atlanta Braves have also donated memorabilia such as signed baseball cards and gently used baseball bats, among other items, for a silent auction.
The Club has received generous support from its Board of Directors, City of Cairo, MLB, Musco Lighting and Scotts Miracle-Gro, which is being applied towards ball field lighting, construction of ball field dugouts, bleachers, player benches, fencing, seeding, fertilizer and field maintenance equipment for the new field.
Flowers Foods, headquartered in Thomasville, is an additional generous supporter of this event, and has been named a presenting sponsor for the event.
The weekend’s festivities will consist of an elegant tribute dinner with silent auction, live entertainment and the unveiling of a new youth baseball field on Club grounds. Former MLB Players are also sponsoring a Baseball Pitch, Hit & Run (PHR) exhibition for Saturday’s groundbreaking, a free and fun event for Boys & Girls Club members to showcase their pitching, hitting and running abilities.
“The ‘Diamond Affair’ is by far the biggest and most exciting fundraising event our Club has ever organized and we could not be more excited to see the community come together the way it has,” says Nola Daughtry, Boys and Girls Club of Cairo-Grady County Board Member and Event Chair. “We are thrilled with the overwhelming amount of donations we have received and the large numbers of people we have seen coming together to give to our local Boys & Girls Club in support of our community.”
This event aims to create new opportunities for the youth in the Cairo-Grady community through baseball and softball programs, while encouraging teamwork and leadership skills. Such activities reinforce positive behavior and promote brighter futures.
For more information, tickets or sponsorship opportunities, please call 229-228-5155 or visit www.mnw-bgc.org.
