January’s Recipient of Sayulita Life’s $5,000 Donation*: Sayulita’s Local Jaibitos Youth Baseball Team
This month’s recipient of Sayulita Life’s $5,000 donation is Sayulita’s local youth baseball team, the Jaibitos. The youth baseball team is run and organized by coach Pedro Navarro, who volunteers his time and efforts in supporting the kids and their baseball program. Thanks to his hard work and time, and Sayulita Life’s donation, which will go directly toward the purchase of new equipment, our youth can now enjoy a fully operational baseball program with proper equipment, in order to play competitively in games against other teams in surrounding areas.
Three years ago, around 2017, Roger Tierney, a Sayulita resident originally from Canada, started teaching some Sayulita children how to play baseball safely and properly at Manuel Rodriguez Sanchez Stadium. Since then, the program has continued to grow and thrive thanks to the help from Roger’s friends in Canada, who often visit Sayulita, Matt Stooke, and Murray Seward. Matt and Murray are largely responsible for donating most of the equipment to the team, sourcing equipment over the last three years, and bringing it back to Sayulita for the youth to use. The team recently received a generous donation from Murray and some of his Canadian friends, who purchased enough jock-straps and cups for the whole team, as well as a pitching machine and dozens of baseballs. Roger tells me more about how the program is doing today, and about how Sayulita Life’s donation will help their team continue to grow and be successful.
“Thanks for the honor of being the January recipient of Sayulita Life’s generous donation in support of community activities. The local kids are still playing baseball, however right now they are on a short break while their head coach, Pedro, visits his family in Tuxpan for the holidays. They will be back practicing and playing games in the New Year of 2020.
They were playing every Saturday throughout November and December of 2019, and would have practice four times a week. Just a few weeks ago they also had a tournament in Sayulita, and four different teams from the region played. The ages of the players range between 7 and 11 years old; we have local kids joining all the time, but right now there are about 15 kids in total on the team. Once the state semi-pro baseball league has finished and we get through the fair in February of 2020, we’ll have more field time.
The funds from Sayulita Life’s donation will go toward improving the safety of the training area coach Pedro is using, as well as spending some on baseballs and other equipment the team needs, such as safety helmets. Thanks to the entire Sayulita Life team for their generous contribution in helping our local youth.”
To find out more about the Jaibitos Baseball Team or how to fund, assist, or volunteer, please contact Matt Stooke.
*Since its founding in 2004, SayulitaLife.com has been dedicated to giving back to the community of Sayulita. In our 15th year as a company, Sayulita Life has created the “Giving Fund”, where we have pledged to donate $5,000 pesos EVERY MONTH to a local charity or cause. Read more at https://www.sayulitalife.com/giving-back.
Written by: Aanya Sheikh-Taheri
