South Fulton Little League Brings Back Memories
From Williamsport Urban Initiative Jamboree 2009
South Fulton Little League, District 4, was one of 6 Major League teams selected from across the U.S. to participate in the 6th Annual Urban Initiative Jamboree! The Jamboree was held Memorial Day Weekend, May 22-25, 2009. The players actually played at Lamade Stadium, home to the Little League World Series.
Many of the players wrote about their experience to share with others.
Ajae's story:
- The time that I had in Williamsport, PA was awesome and it was a once in a lifetime moment for me. I woke up at 4:35 in the morning to get dressed and to get ready to go. We arrived in the airport early and then we met up with the coach and the rest of the team. We went straight through security and to the gate. We took the plane to Newark, NJ that took two hours. It was a nice and smooth ride. When we got to Newark we took a coach bus to Williamsport that took three hours. When we got there it was beautiful, the field was and the background was too. When we walked into the dorm it was beautiful. We had to change into our uniform and go the field. Once we were at the field we had an opening ceremony, all they did was told us the rules. To wrap this thing up our season was 3-1 we lost one game out of four and like I said in the first sentence it was a once in a lifetime moment for me.
Eric - My Trip to Williamsport, PA:
- My trip to Williamsport, PA was a great experience. We visited many historical sites like the birthplace of Little League Baseball and the baseball museum. The birthplace was the site of the first Little League game in 1939. At the museum we were told President Bush was a Little League graduate. We had an opportunity to get some training from employees of the Baseball Factory (and they don't make baseballs). They showed us ways to perfect our skills. It was awesome. We played on 3 fields that were well manicured. The fields were nothing I've ever seen before. We won 3 out of 4 games. It was a great experience to share with my teammates, coaches and our chaperones, Uncle Ed and his wife. Just wish we could've stayed longer.
Lamont's story:
- During our weekend trip to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, I learned a lot and played a lot. I learned that Mr. Stoltz started Little League Baseball. We played near the field of the first Little League games in 1939. There were two big stadiums where we played. We played four games. We won three and lost one. We had fun. I really enjoyed myself.
Adrielle's story:
- My weekend at the 2009 Jamboree was great. When I first arrived in Pennsylvania I was very excited. We got there on Friday. In the beginning I was scared to ride the plane because it was the first time I'd ever riden a plane. The flight was long but the bus ride seemed longer. We stopped at McDonald's for a quick lunch and then we acted like little kids playing in the play house. We had a lot of un on the bus. Everybody tried to stay up all night but some of us couldn't. The bus driver told us to look at the field we were going to be playing on out the window. It was so cool staying in a dorm. I was the only girl so I had to share a room with a coach and the boys shared a room. We won 3 games out of 4 and I was very glad. I hope we can go back next year.
Brenden's story:
- My trip to Williamsport, PA was exciting, when we flew there. The staff had a lot of things planned. They showed us all the fields, and told us about them, Carl Stolz, and how he started Little League Baseball. All of the teams at the dorms went on a tour of the Little League Museum on campus and we saw old baseball gloves and a video showing Carl Stolz explaining to kids how to play baseball. On Saturday, we had a game at 1:30 against the Stealers. We won that game. After the game, we went swimming. We had a slamming lunch. After lunch, we had another game we lost but we didn't give up. Then we had a great dinner. On Sunday, we did some baseball drills with Major League Baseball players and trainers from the Baseball Factory. We had a double header against the Monarchs and the Phillies. We won both games ending the series with a 3 to 1 record. The way back to Atlanta seemed shorter than going to Williamsport. That was my trip to the Little League World Seris Urban Initiative Jamboree.
