The Little League Challenger Division was established in 1989 as "an adaptive baseball program for individuals with physical and intellectual challenges."
For three or four years, Franklin Little League officials have wanted to get at least one Challenger game started locally, but it kept falling through. This year, they were determined to make it happen, whatever it took.
"This year we just told ourselves, ‘Hey, we’re doing it no matter what,’" league president Jarrod Hughes said.
Last Saturday, the idea finally came to fruition. Fourteen players between the ages of 7 and 20 with physical and mental disabilities were paired up with 16 "buddies" and split into teams for Franklin’s first Challenger game, a two-inning affair at Creekside Elementary School.
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For Hughes, the event was even more satisfying than he could have imagined going in.
"After being there on that one, it kind of touches you in a way and gets to you a little bit," he said. "To see them smiling, that was probably one of the highlights of the season."
Hughes was one of the driving forces that got the game going, along with fellow league officials Jacob Wambsganss and Brian Alsip. Each of the three had his own personal motivation for getting the project moving.
Wambsganss and his wife spent two and a half years at Riley Children’s Hospital with their son, Ty, who ultimately passed away after battling a series of ailments he’d faced since birth, and the time they spent there has stayed with them since.
"Being with those kids at the hospital all the time, their attitude was amazing," Wambsganss said. "It’s likely that if our son had made it, this would have been his opportunity to play."
Hughes has a son who battled cancer for a couple of years, and Alsip has a 4-year-old son with spina bifida that he hopes will be able to take advantage of the opportunity to play in Challenger games himself.
"I really want it to be successful so he can play in it in two or three years," Alsip said.
Other communities have Challenger Divisions set up with regular practice and game schedules, but Franklin Little League doesn’t foresee going down that road anytime soon. Ideally, officials say, they can grow numbers to the point where an all-day event featuring as many as four or five games becomes a possibility, but the logistical and financial challenges of stretching across multiple weekends might not be worthwhile.
For many families who take part in the Challenger games, costs can become a concern. Franklin was able to alleviate those by lining up sponsors, enabling all of the kids who took part last weekend to do so for free. The title sponsor, The Criminal Defense Team, made sure to cover the costs of shirts, gloves and souvenir balls for all of the players, while three other local businesses (Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, First Financial Bank and the Indiana chapter of Tri Kappa) also provided some assistance.
Hughes is fairly certain that another primary sponsor is already lined up for a similar event next year, and the hope is that even more players will take part — especially now that everyone’s seen how big a deal the game was to kids that don’t get a chance to play with their peers on a regular basis.
"Hopefully all those kids will come back next year," Hughes said. "It seemed like they were having a good time. It was definitely an eye-opener for us parents who don’t have to deal with that all the time."
The "buddies" who participated, all kids between the ages of 11 and 16 who were nominated through Franklin Little League, benefited from the experience as well. Wambsganss noted that it was gratifying to see kids who take playing baseball for granted helping kids who don’t yet know the basics, such as how to run to first base, hold a bat or put on a glove.
"It’s definitely more than baseball for us," Wambsganss said. "There’s so many kids out there that don’t get to play because it’s not safe for them; they don’t have the attention or the motor skills. If we can give them a chance to play for a day, we almost feel responsible to give them that opportunity."
