'Badge for Baseball' clinic helps youth make connections with local law enforcement

Baseball clinic helps youth connect with local law enforcement

Officers with the Tampa Police Department are coming together for a special "Badges for Baseball" clinic in Tampa. The event put on by the Cal Ripkin Sr., Foundation pairs law enforcement personnel with underserved youth and uses team sports like baseball to teach them valuable life skills.

TAMPA, Fla. - Officers with the Tampa Police Department are coming together for a special "Badges for Baseball" clinic in Tampa. The event put on by the Cal Ripkin Sr., Foundation pairs law enforcement personnel with underserved youth and uses team sports like baseball to teach them valuable life skills. 

"Kids when they are not active doing something positive, there's no telling what they might be doing out in the streets," Badges for Baseball City of Tampa Coordinator Remer McIntyre said. "We provide an outlet."

It's an opportunity for underserved youth to make positive connections with the law enforcement officers who serve their community.

"Any time we can interact with these athletes, these young kids outside of a crisis situation, it's a win-win for all," Badges for Baseball Tampa Police Department Coordinator Gig Brown said. "And that's pretty much what the program is designed to do."

The Badges for Baseball program was started back in 2006 by the Cal Ripkin Sr., Foundation as a way to create trust and help mend strained relationships between law enforcement and underprivileged communities. Wednesday, more than 120 kids ages nine to 14 participated in the multi-sport clinic at the Spring Hill Park Community Center in Tampa.

"The officers coming out to help engaging with the kids, it builds trust within the neighborhood," McIntyre said. "A lot of the times in the black community, when we see cops, it's not for a good reason. Now we have the cops out here actually helping train the kids. So like I say, that trust is very major for these kids."

It's a way to not only make connections but help underserved kids build important life skills and make positive behavioral decisions that will set them up for success later in life.

"For this, it's baseball, but it could be anything," Brown said. "It could be soccer. It could be basketball, could be swimming, tennis, golf. You know, athletic competition is just a great arena to teach life."