The Miracle League of the 805 raising funds for specialized fields in Camarillo

The Miracle League of the 805 began a few years ago with a simple idea: provide children and adults with special needs the chance to play baseball in Camarillo.

Today, Rick and Jodie Pena, founders of the local nonprofit, are striving to establish a baseball league for the special needs community that will initially serve between 60 and 80 players, with the ultimate goal to reach up to 300.

“This is an opportunity for the special needs community to be included in something they should already have the opportunity to do – play baseball just like anyone else, be on a team, wear a uniform, make friends and have fun,” said Rick Pena, of Camarillo.

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Since 2017, the couple has been raising money to build a field with a rubberized, flat turf, making it accessible to those who use wheelchairs and walkers. It will also feature wide dugouts to accommodate wheelchair users. The total cost of the project is $900,000, and “we need to raise about $250,000 more to reach our goal,” Rick Pena said.

The first fundraiser in 2017 grossed $35,000. The fundraiser the following year grossed $90,000, and the most recent event on Feb. 6 at Las Posas Country Club in Camarillo grossed about $40,000.

“We have also been awarded a couple large donations of $50,000,” said Rick Pena, adding that the Miracle League of the 805 was also given a matching grant by the NewCo Foundation of $450,000.

“Currently, we are needing monetary donations and community awareness and support,” he said.

Additionally, once the field is built, “we will need volunteers to help run the league and for the Buddy Program,” he noted in reference to a program in which every player is paired up with a “buddy” during each game.

“This is a great opportunity for our community to come together, to promote inclusion and to build relationships and self-confidence,” he added.

Rick Pena first discovered the Miracle League more than a decade ago when he saw a segment about the program on HBO’s "Real Sports." He learned that the original league began in 1998 in Georgia, where the Rockdale Youth Baseball Association invited children with unique abilities to play on a typical baseball field.

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During that initial season, 140 participants played baseball, and by the second season, a new field was developed especially for athletes on the Miracle League with a cushioned, rubberized surface, making it slightly easier for players with special needs to get from base to base.

When Rick married Jodie in 2016, “I showed her the segment,” he recalled, adding that he grew up playing baseball, and that his wife has a background with nonprofit organizations.

“We thought this would be something we would like to be a part of, but there was not a local franchise,” he said. “So, we thought that Ventura County should have one and we took on the project.”

He added that he and his wife are currently in negotiations with Pleasant Valley Recreation and Park District to build the field on the southeast corner at Freedom Park near the Camarillo Airport.

“Our goal is to have this agreement completed so that we can break ground by the end of 2020 and have our opening season in either the spring or fall of 2021,” he said.

To make a donation, visit www.miracleleague805.org/donations.