Jeddah may be one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world. Expatriate communities here have flourished and have brought to this city pieces of their original homes. Indications of Jeddah's spirit in embracing a wide range of cultures is the large number of schools for expatriates from the British, American, and French schools to their Indian, Pakistani and Filipino counterparts. You can find restaurants from almost every region of the world and small mini-markets with street signs written in Indonesian. Guess what else Jeddah has to offer? Two of the most famous icons at the heart of the American culture: hot dogs and baseball. If you thought baseball was only played in America, think again. You can play baseball here in Jeddah too. Thirty years ago, several American families established the Jeddah Youth Baseball League (JYBL). The Saudia City residential compound has green baseball fields and the league was initiated to give families the chance to spend more time together and to invite other children to play to open cross-cultural communication. And they succeeded! Today, Mark Gonzales is the president of the JYBL and his wife, Kate Gonzales, is the vice-president. The JYBL is a volunteer organization and the coaches are parents who want to spend more time with their kids and encourage them to play sports. Kate Gonzales told Saudi Gazette: “All children are welcome to come in and play. They do not have to be residents of the compound. We charge SR500 for each child for the entire year; this includes tailor-made uniforms, training, hot dogs for lunch after each weekly game, and the end of year awards' party. We also provide a visitor's pass that they can use all year long to enter the compound if they live elsewhere.” Baseball is a competitive sport which is quite intense and takes a lot of team work. But all in all, it is really a fun game. At the games you hear enthusiastic cheering from both the parents and the kids and you hear intermittent shouts of “Strike!” or “Safe!” JYBL provides a safe outdoor place where kids can make friends, learn to get along with their team members, and get plenty of healthy exercise by running around between bases. The wonderful thing about the league is that the team members are from so many different backgrounds. African American, British, and Arab children play and working together side by side. They are always reminded that the goal of the game is to have a good time and it does not matter which team wins. Kate added: “Any kid can play with us because we are not selective. Some children have joined who did not know anything about baseball, not even how to hold a bat. We have great coaches who teach these children. You can start to see a tremendous difference in their ability to play after a couple weeks of practice. “The teams have practice twice a week and they have a game every Thursday. We picked Thursday so the parents can have some time off from work. We expect parents to attend the games, to be more actively involved, to encourage their children, and to help in some way. Some parents are coaches, others play as the umpire who sits behind the batter, and others are part of the lively crowd who watch the games. We need the parents' support because we are solely a volunteer organization. Since the number of American families have dwindled in recent years, we have been facing some difficulty finding parent coaches who know the game. But we have we will survive, and we still have a number of dedicated families,” Gonzales said. One father, who loves baseball, has four children in the JYBL teams, ranging in age from 16 years to the youngest one who is only 4 years old. This baseball dad, Aamir Khan, said: “My kids have played for several years and I know that being a part of JYBL has positively influenced them. It has helped build their sense of camaraderie and the team spirit and how to be a good sport. I think baseball is the only organized sport in Jeddah that allows the parents and the whole family to become part of the game.” The members of the JYBL are even considering starting a women's only team next year. June marked the end of the baseball season. JYBL held a pizza party and awards ceremony where the best players received trophies. If you think baseball is a sport you and your kids may enjoy, you can contact the vice-president of JYBL at 0508620213.
