North PDX Minors Softball is Going to States!

Co-organized

Caroline Bickerstaff Hayes and Gwen Vanderwal are organizing this fundraiser.

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The Flaming Pickles, North Portland's Minors Softball All Star Team, is Oregon District 1 champion and is going to the Minors State tournament in Ashland, OR!!

Not only is this incredibly exciting and special for our girls, but this is also huge for North Portland, as NoPo has not historically had the participation necessary to field All Star Softball teams, and does not have a recent history of sending teams to States in either baseball or softball.

These 13 amazing softball players are breaking ground!

Softball is often an under-supported and under-appreciated sport, and these players are making moves to change that in North Portland. With community support, we believe that we can cover necessary costs of traveling to the tournament, give these players the amazing experience that they deserve, AND secure the promising future of softball in North Portland!

Finances are often a barrier for families to participate in sports, and Little League is an inclusive community sports program that does not assume participating families are able or required to spend large amounts of money on the sport. Registration costs are low, and the league is run on volunteer hours and covers the cost of uniforms, gear, fields, and umpires through business partnerships, sponsorship, and community support. Our families did not enter this season planning on a trip to States (again, this isn't something our teams are historically prepared to do!), and we do not want to make winning our district tournament a financial hardship for our players.

We hope to, at minimum, cover travel and lodging expenses for our 13 families so that all of our players can participate and have their families there to support them. Additional funding will go toward improving our players' experience by providing a team and family pizza dinner after the first day of gameplay, as well as healthy snacks, drinks, and treats for players during the tournament.

Details:

Tournament location: Ashland, OR (290 miles from North Portland, 4-5 hours by car).

Tournament Dates: Friday 7/14-Monday 7/17

Lodging Cost - 3 nights for 13 families: $6981

Additional expenses: Travel expenses (primarily gas), Family Pizza Dinner, healthy snacks, drinks, and treats for 13 players during tournament.

Distribution Method: Money will be distributed to families to cover travel and lodging expenses based on greatest need. Funding above this need will cover the cost of pizza dinner and items for players.

Surplus Funding: Any money that is raised and not used for the above purposes will be donated to North Portland Little League toward costs for the 2024 Softball season.

Thank you for considering celebrating our North Portland Softball players!!

All Photo Credits: Alli Novak https://www.luzography.com/