BEDFORD COMMON: What started with a weekend of chicken, games, prizes and a little good-natured pie throwing has turned into nearly $5,000 in support of LWF Challenger Baseball in Fall River.
Mary Brown’s Bedford Commons recently wrapped up a three-day fundraiser in support of the LWF Challenger Baseball program, raising $2,400 for the local program.
Then came an even bigger surprise.
LWF Baseball, through representative Barry Dalrymple, announced it would match the $2,400 raised by Mary Brown’s, bringing the total to $4,800.
“It was an amazing weekend,” said Shauna Hamilton, manager of the Bedford Commons Mary Brown’s.
The fundraiser featured a variety of activities throughout the three days, including games, prizes, a spin-the-wheel game and a staff pie-in-the-face challenge.
A large portion of the money came through Mary Brown’s Fan Favourites boxes, with $15 from every box going toward the fundraiser. That effort brought in approximately $1,700, while the games and pie-in-the-face activities added another $700.
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For Hamilton, however, the fundraiser was about more than simply reaching a dollar figure.
“It’s a feel-good moment,” she said, recalling the reaction from Challenger players and their families.
During the final night of the fundraiser, Challenger players stopped by the restaurant, bringing hugs and thank-you cards for the staff.
Hamilton had been given a choice between two Jays Care-affiliated organizations to support — one in Sackville and the LWF Challenger program in Fall River.
She reached out to Challenger Baseball representative Shawn Ryder, and the connection was made.
“We hit it off right then and made it go from there,” Hamilton said.
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Ryder said the support from Mary Brown’s, Jays Care and the community has been tremendous as the Challenger program continues to grow.
“We have some amazing athletes and we have amazing buddies, and it is growing, and we hope to continue to do that in the community,” Ryder said. “The support from not just Mary Brown’s, but the people that come out and help us is extreme.
“We’re extremely grateful for it.”
The money will have a very practical impact.
The Challenger program currently stores much of its equipment at the High Road field in shipping containers that are also used to store equipment for maintaining the fields.
The goal is to have a dedicated storage container for Challenger Baseball equipment, giving the program a place to keep its gear, shirts and other supplies organized and readily accessible.
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Thanks to the matching contribution from LWF Baseball, the $2,400 raised over three busy days at Mary Brown’s will go twice as far.
“$2,400 becomes $4,800,” came the announcement during the conversation — a number that drew an immediate reaction.
“That’s amazing,” was the response.
If there is money left over after the storage project, Ryder said the program hopes to put it toward some fun extras for the players, potentially including personalized jerseys and offseason activities.
It sounds like this could become an annual tradition.
After seeing how much fun the first fundraiser was, Mary Brown’s is already looking ahead to doing it again, with a promise to make next year’s event “bigger and better.”
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And if next year’s fundraiser is anything like this year’s, there could be even more fun — and perhaps a little more humiliation — involved.
During the conversation about bringing the fundraiser back next year and making it “bigger and better,” a familiar face even stepped forward to volunteer for the cause.
The Laker News’ own Pat Healey offered to be one of next year’s pie-in-the-face targets.
So, consider it official: if Mary Brown’s and LWF Challenger Baseball make good on their plans for an even bigger fundraiser next year, Healey may be taking a pie to the face for a good cause.
Judging by the success of this year’s event, that might be one fundraiser people will want to mark on their calendars.
