EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) – Most people go their entire lives without thinking twice about their lives within sports. Running and jumping, throwing and singing, all without batting an eye. But there are some that do not have the ability or even the access that many have on a day-to-day basis. The best way for them to those experiences is to come together and give back to the community.
Colt Egan has a form of high-functioning autism and epilepsy, but that does not stop him from playing baseball.
“It’s [more fun] to play than to watch,” Egan said.
But most children and adults, like Colt, do not get to play like many of their able-bodied peers. The Evansville Otters, Challenger Baseball and the Beautiful Lives Project came together Monday night at Bosse Field to give people with special needs the special the experience of playing baseball.
“Giving them the opportunity to do something like this where they can come out and enjoy the sport and be able to have a little bit of normal and to do something that he likes to watch and he likes to participate,” Colt’s dad, Dustin, said. “It’s a lot of fun.”
To some, the word fun goes hand-in-hand with the word inclusive. And that is the most important piece of the puzzle to people like Bryce Weiler, a blind man with a love for sports.
“It allows people to come together and to unite behind a common goal of showing that if a person with a disability is solely given an opportunity to live his or her dreams, that they can be successful in life,” Weiler said. “The thing that is lacking for people who have disabilities are those opportunities to have those life time and life changing experiences and moments.”
Life changing moments are not always easy to find. For many they are few and far between. But when they do appear, Colt’s dad Dustin is not afraid to grab them and never let go.
“Well, I played [baseball] when I was young, so for him to come out and be able to enjoy it, it’s just a lot of fun to see,” Dustin Egan said. “To see him enjoy it and to see other kids play and, you know, and be able to see the excitement on their faces when they get to hit the ball and run. And, you know, it’s just a lot of fun and it’s so rewarding.”
During this event, the children and adults with special needs got to spend time with superstars in the community in the Evansville Otters. Weiler’s biggest message to both the fans and the team is pay it forward.
“Yes, baseball is important,” Weiler said. “But doing this can be just as important. And as [the Otters] try to better their standing in the playoffs this week in their road travels, think back to these moments of when they were giving baseball to others and try to bring baseball back to Bosse Field for some home playoff games.”
