Updated: February 22, 2010 For More Information, Contact: Michelle Wong: Public Relations Specialist mwong05@syr.

edu (917) 402-8926 Position Statement: Community Service is a Team Necessity Knowing your community is just as important as knowing your teammates. Its the community that supports the team at every game, and helps pay for new stadiums being erected. The community is also partly responsible for each team members payroll by buying tickets to every baseball game, as well as merchandise, jerseys, and anything else team related. Communities are also the homes of the teams, and are often filled with team fans. The team is important, but a team isnt known if not for its fans. Children in the community also often look up to and admire team members, and often aspire to become as successful as their favorite players in the future. The community invests a lot in their sports teams, more than most teams realize. Since the community does so much to support the team, the team should do just as much, if not more, to support their communities. Community service may not seem too important, but it is a necessity for professional sports teams. Helping out the community in any way whether it be by donating to charities or reading aloud a book at the local library helps professional players seem more human and approachable. Fans would be more appreciative of their favorite teams because their favorite player would not only be great players, but would also be great people. Helping the local communities can also help humble players because not everybody can earn millions for doing something that they love. Doing community service gives a team a better and more positive name and connotations in the media. Community service should become a necessity for every team because it does not only benefit the neighboring community, but also benefits the team itself. Yankees and their Community The 2009 World Series Champions often volunteer in their community. The Yankees mission regarding volunteering is to promote and sustain a cordial and cooperative relationships with their neighbors; working in conjunction with them to enhance the quality of life throughout the surrounding communities. The Yankees take great pride in being able to contribute back to their community through various activities, which is partially why the Yankees is one of the most loved teams in New York City. The Yankees support a number of charities, organizations, and organizations, and also hold several special events to help those less fortunate than others during the holiday season. More

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The Yankees also try to be a positive influence on their younger fans. They have many community partners, such as the All Hallows High School and the Public School Athletic League. The team contributes at least $1 million to all of these partners, collectively. Students are also encouraged to attend seminars hosted at the stadium to learn more about various careers associated with professional athletics. The Yankees front office personnel would share their dayto-day responsibilities at these seminars, and provide a basic behind-the-scenes look of gamedays and what it means to work for a professional baseball team.1 The Yankees also partake in a program called Go Bat for Child Protection, where the team partners with the Montefiore Child Protection Center to fight against child abuse. The team annually invites supporters of the Child Protection Center to the stadium for fundraising events that consist of a pre-game reception, a live auction, and a viewing of the game from various suites in the stadium and outdoors in the stands. The team fundraised over $300,000 in the fight against child abuse in New York City in 2009.2 Derek Jeter & Community Service One particular Yankee player has contributed so much to his community that hes won an award for it. Shortstop Derek Jeter won the 2009 Roberto Clemente Award, an award that is annually given to a major league player who combines community service with excellence in the field. Jeter received the award due to the work he dedicated to his organization Turn 2 Foundation, which supports programs that help young adults choose a healthier lifestyle and turn away from drugs and alcohol. Jeter strongly believes in giving back to the community, especially if the contributor is someone who is famous and can make a great impact by volunteering. In a press release, Jeters sister stated that she believed the Clemente Award meant the most to the shortstop, because he was being awarded for doing the right thing.3 HOPE Week. Yankees and Fans In July 2009, the Yankees introduced a new weeklong project that they called HOPE week, with HOPE standing for Helping Others Persevere and Excel. It was designed by the team to highlight five remarkable stories, intended to inspire others to help and volunteer in their neighborhoods, and to help bring goodwill to the neighborhoods.. The 2009 HOPE week ran from July 20, 2009 until July 24, 2009. For each day during the week, all 25 Yankee players would be divided into groups and go reach out to each individual, family, or organization that the team decided to honor. Every single player on the roster, as well as manager Joe Girardi, participated in HOPE Week. - More http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/nyy/community/yankees_in_the_community.jsp http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/nyy/community/yankees_in_the_community.jsp 3 http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2009/news/story?id=4606549
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HOPE Week allowed many Yankees fans to have their dreams achieved. Fans met their favorite players while being awarded, recognized, and congratulated for the work that theyve done for their community. These fans also learn who the players really are outside of baseball. Some fans learn that the famous baseball players are also actual humans, who are polite and do say, Excuse me, when they bump into others. However, the fans were not the only people affected during HOPE week. The Yankee players who visited each honoree were also humbled and amazed. Closer Mariano Rivera, who visited an honoree the first day of HOPE Week, said that the real heroes were the honorees, not the Yankee players who were visiting.4 Third baseman Alex Rodriguez, who visited another honoree agreed. Rodriguez said that the players participate because they enjoy volunteering - they gain a lot from each visit, and learn the lesson of going out and opening up their hearts. 5 Conclusion Community service is definitely a necessity for all teams. It can help teams gain recognition for events other than winning games. Doing community service also enhances the teams image, and may help gain more fans, and thus more revenue sources. Players also learn a lot from doing community service about themselves, and about their communities. As Jeter said, if youre in the position to do some service and give back to the community, then go and volunteer in the community. But teams should always contribute back to their communities, because it is the communities who contribute most to the teams. Audience: Other General Managers.

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4http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090720&content_id=5962842&vkey=news_nyy

&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy 5http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090721&content_id=5977794&vkey=news_nyy &fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy