Good news: If you haven\u2019t yet donated to the Let\u2019s Play Ball drive but would like to do so \u2014 you have some extra time.<\/p>\n
To make sure we collect as many donations as possible for both the Boys & Girls Clubs of Long Beach and the Los Angeles Harbor, we have decided to extend the deadline for another two weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to give last-minute shoppers more time to donate sports balls or money so we can help more of our members,\u201d said Don Rodriguez, CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Long Beach. \u201cWe are grateful for everyone who has supported the campaign so far.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know this year has been challenging for many,\u201d he added,\u201dand that makes every donation even more meaningful.\u201d<\/p>\n
The annual Let\u2019s Play Ball Drive is sponsored by the Press Telegram and Daily Breeze \u2014 as well as their respective weekly sister publications, the Grunion Gazette and The Beach Reporter \u2014 in partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of both Long Beach and the LA Harbor.<\/p>\n
The goal this year is to provide at least 5,000 balls combined \u2014 or 2,500 to each organization. So far, we\u2019ve collected 1,095 balls for the Long Beach clubs and 537 for the Harbor area clubs, though Christina Choy, the director of marketing and communications for the latter organization said some people were expected to do a drop-off soon.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s that time of year again when we want to make sure we can gather every last sports ball we can muster for local kids,\u201d said Tom Bray, senior editor of the Los Angeles County publications for the Southern California News Group, including the P-T and the Breeze. \u201cOur readers always come through for those kids, and I\u2019m confident they will again this year. They just need a little more time.\u201d<\/p>\n
To that end, the deadline has been extended from Monday, Dec. 15, to Dec. 28.<\/p>\n
In Long Beach, an anonymous donor has offered \u00a0to donate $10,000 on the condition that Press-Telegram and Grunion readers match it with $10,000.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope to make the matching $10,000,\u201d Rodriguez said, \u201cand we have received good support so far, but we need to dig a little deeper to meet the matching donation.\u201d<\/p>\n
And in case you\u2019re wondering, these balls \u2014 whether for basketball, football, soccer or other sports \u2014 are crucial.<\/p>\n
Sports activities are great for team building and keep kids off the streets, contributing to their health, Rodriguez said.<\/p>\n
\u201cReaching our goal this year,\u201d he said, \u201cplays a crucial role in ensuring that our kids will continue to benefit from a rich and vibrant experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rodriguez thanked John Morris, owner of the Boathouse on the Bay restaurant, for his support at his annual Toys and Balls Drive on Tuesday, Dec. 9.<\/p>\n
\u201cJohn is such a strong supporter of kids,\u201d Rodriguez said. \u201cIt was great seeing his customers dropping off balls with toys.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rodriguez also encouraged donors to visit Big 5 Sporting Goods, which is once again participating in the ball drive. Certain Big 5 locations in Long Beach and the South Bay will provide a 25% discount for any regularly priced sports balls that folks buy to donate to the Let\u2019s Play Ball campaign.<\/p>\n
There are two ways you can get new sports balls to the Boys & Girls Clubs: First, by dropping them off in person at the various locations listed below. Second, by using your credit card online, with instructions also listed below.<\/p>\n
Kids are gleeful about donors who are dropping balls off at the clubs, Rodriguez said.<\/p>\n
One youngster, 8-year-old Nathan, said this after a woman dropped off soccer balls at one of the clubs:<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the lady gave me the balls, she said they were just for me to play with,\u201d Nathan said, according to Rodriguez. \u201cI felt so special, I started to cry. It was like a big, happy surprise.\u00a0 Now, every time I kick those balls, I will think about how nice people are and how much fun I can have because of them. Thank you, everyone!\u201d<\/p>\n
And we thank you in advance for your support helping kids like Nathan \u2014 and so many others during this holiday season.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s Play Ball<\/p>\n
The Let\u2019s Play Ball campaign benefits both the Boys & Girls Clubs of Long Beach and the Boys & Girls Clubs of the LA Harbor. Here\u2019s where you can donate.<\/p>\n
Long Beach area:<\/p>\n
Boys & Girls Clubs of Long Beach\u2019s main office, 3635 Long Beach Blvd., 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday.
\nBig 5 Sporting Goods: 4780 Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach, and 5247 Lakewood Blvd., Lakewood, during store hours. Big 5 will provide 25% off any regularly priced sports balls, except golf balls and tennis balls, that customers buy to donate to the Play Ball campaign.
\nPhil Trani\u2019s Restaurant, 3490 Long Beach Blvd.
\nBoathouse on the Bay Restaurant, 190 Marina Drive, Long Beach.
\nFirst Bank locations: 4040 Atlantic Ave., Bixby Knolls; 5195 Lakewood Blvd., Lakewood; 6200 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach.
\n9Round Kickbox & Fitness Center, 6502 E. Spring St.
\nWatch Me! Sports Bar, 6527 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach.<\/p>\n
You can also donate money or purchase balls or other items off the Long Beach clubs\u2019 Amazon wish list. To do so, click on bgclub.org\/Joy. For more information, email Kari Cho, vice president of marketing and development for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Long Beach, at karic@bgclublb.org, or or call 562-595-5945.<\/p>\n
South Bay:<\/p>\n
Boys & Girls Clubs of L.A. Harbor locations: 1200 S. Cabrillo Ave., San Pedro (send Amazon orders to this address); 100 W. Fifth St., Port of LA; 1444 W. Q St., Wilmington; 1220 W. 256th St., Harbor City, and 802 W. Gardena Blvd., Harbor Gateway.
\nBig 5 Sporting Goods: 529 S. Gaffey St., San Pedro; 2745 Pacific Coast Highway, Torrance; 17542 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance, and 2515 E. El Segundo Blvd., El Segundo. Big 5 will provide 25% off any regularly priced sports ball, except golf balls and tennis balls, that customers buy to donate to the Play Ball campaign.
\nFirst Bank locations: 21503 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance, and 1644 W. Redondo Beach Blvd., Gardena.<\/p>\n
One final note: We\u2019re always looking for more drop-off locations, whether a sports bar, a restaurant or even a retail store. To become a drop-off location, email me at rarchbold@scng.com and Coastal Cities Editor Chris Haire at chaire@scng.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Good news: If you haven\u2019t yet donated to the Let\u2019s Play Ball drive but would like to do…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":94309,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[7,3172,131,133,132,47,137,100,1439],"class_list":{"0":"post-94308","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-long-beach","8":"tag-california","9":"tag-harbor-area","10":"tag-long-beach","11":"tag-long-beach-headlines","12":"tag-long-beach-news","13":"tag-los-angeles","14":"tag-los-angeles-county","15":"tag-news","16":"tag-san-pedro"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94308","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94308"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94308\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/94309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94308"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94308"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94308"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}