Help Me Go to Italy to Play Softball for the United States

TLDR; After only two years of playing softball I've been selected by America's Team to play on an United States team in Italy. This gives me an opportunity of a lifetime to not only play in a different continent and country but also to represent the United States.

In April of 2021, me and my family moved across Texas from the city I had lived in for the majority of my life, I was taken away from members of my family, friends, and everything that was familiar to me. Within a few days of starting my new middle school, they announced softball tryouts. When I had told my mom, she told me that I had to tryout for the team.

The weekend before the tryouts was the first time I had ever picked up a glove, and since then it feels as if I've never put it down.

The day I found out I still remember very vividly. It was the morning of April 21st, and that school day I had nearly sprinted to the location of where they had hung up the paper listing those who had made the team. One of those names belonged to me, and I had sent a photo to my parents telling them the news. However, that same day I was taken out of school early to be given the news that my grandmother had passed away. I never got to tell her I made the softball team, I hadn't even been able to say goodbye. To this day it still feels as if every time I step onto that field it is not only for me, but for her as well.

Since that seventh-grade spring season two years ago, there hasn't been a single season I haven't played. There were even seasons I played on more than one team. In November of 2024, I was invited to attend a college showcase at UT Arlington. Now, in June of this year, I recieved an invite from America's Team saying they had seen my preformance at that showcase and wanted to send me to represent the United States all the way in Italy in July of 2026

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to not only go to a different country, which I have never done before, but to also represent my home country at the same time. However, such an opportunity comes with a hefty cost. For me to be able to make this trip, I will have to pay 6,000 dollars, which is an amount I do not have, and will not be able to get on my own.

So I ask that if you can, please donate, even if it's just a little, or share with friends and family.

Softball is more than just a sport to me, it's more than just seven inning games. It's my passion, my future, and my way of honoring my grandmother with every step I take on that field. With every donation, you help me in doing so. Every dollar counts.