From left front row:
David Sadowski, Victoria Sadowski, Megan Bissol, Andrew Bogdan, Jeff Fisher, Brayden Morgan, Derrick Morgan
From left back row: Lenny Fisher, Karl Dickersbach, Josh Gurwood, Mary Camp. Photo by Maryanna Savage Phinn
By Maryanna Savage Phinn
A local tennis club’s indoor courts transformed into “Courts of Kindness” for a fun-filled night of pickleball and cornhole games as a fundraiser to support The Miracle League of Northampton Township in mid-January.
The fundraiser, held at the Northampton Tennis Club, raised $4,450 through event registration fees, donations and raffle baskets, according to Mary Camp who served as the event coordinator. All proceeds support field and facility maintenance and programming for the organization, a nonprofit that provides safe playing and social experiences for athletes with special needs of all ages, abilities and interests. The Miracle League offers seasonal sports throughout the year including baseball and softball, basketball, soccer and bowling for more than 160 athletes.
Attendance totaled 60 people. Miracle League athletes received instruction and played with their families and friends at Courts of Kindness enjoying pickleball, cornhole, as well as other fun games.
“Miracle League provides a positive experience for all, not only the athletes but also the parents. Some parents could never imagine they could sit and watch their children play sports and have fun. It’s magical for everyone,” said Mary, who also coaches baseball for young players in the league and serves on the board of directors. “On the fields and courts, our volunteers work with each athlete’s abilities,” she said.
Lenny Fisher and his brother, Jeff, had a brotherly competition playing pickleball and cornhole during Courts of Kindness. Jeff is a veteran Miracle League athlete, competing throughout the year in baseball, bowling and basketball. Lenny serves as president of the board of directors of Miracle League.
“Our main league is the softball program,” Lenny noted. “We are based out of the Northampton Township Municipal Park. In that complex we have two facilities that we use. The main one is our Miracle League field which is a rubberized surface baseball field similar to a track and field type of material. It allows people with wheelchairs and walkers to access the field. That field requires a lot of maintenance every three to five years. Depending on use, it needs to be sealed. Every 15 to 20 years it has to be completely replaced. We are about 15 years in so we are in the long stage planning of complete replacement of the field. Our long-term goals are facility maintenance and keeping these programs alive through these facilities. In the short term, we are a super low-cost option for a lot of these families.”
Lenny noted that basketball is completely free. Baseball and softball have nominal registration charges and the bowling fee is per game. “We require a lot of funding to keep our programs going, for jerseys, equipment and trophies. So all the fundraising that we do offsets any short-term costs. Any money left over goes toward our long-term goals,” Lenny said.
Danielle Zusin of Churchville, who also serves on the board, enjoyed the event while playing cornhole with her seven-year-old twin sons Nick and Noah, who are Miracle League athletes. Her daughter, Michaela, 15, volunteers with the organization. “We help out with baseball in the spring,” Danielle said. “It’s the one activity we all enjoy as a family.”
Shary Sadowski watched as her husband, Tom, and their two children, Miracle League athletes, Victoria, 20, and David, 17, played pickleball. “We’ve been involved with Miracle League since we moved from New Jersey in 2020.” The family lives in Richboro and they look forward to playing all the sports all year long, Shary noted. “We love all the inclusion. They are definitely in the best place here. We support all of these events as much as we can,” she noted.
Stephanie and Joe Bissol of Washington Crossing and their daughter, Megan, 21, have been involved with Miracle League for more than 10 years. Their other children, Joey and Olivia, served as young volunteers and “buddies” to the Miracle League athletes while attending middle school and high school. “We’ve met tons of new friends and made close friends through Miracle League. It gives the kids a chance to see their friends outside of school. They mix up the teams so that the kids get to meet new kids. Megan plays basketball in the winter and softball in the spring. She really loves the one day camp at the end of baseball season which has a lot of family-friendly fun, tournaments and even the Phillie Phanatic visited!”
Jeanell and Derrick Morgan, of Doylestown, and their son, Brayden, 17, have been part of the Miracle League for four years. Brayden especially enjoys baseball as a Miracle League athlete and also plays basketball. We love Miracle League; it’s wonderful,” noted Derrick who coaches basketball in the league and serves on the board.
In addition to the Courts of Kindness fundraiser, the organization holds several other major fundraisers throughout the year including a golf outing and a raffle basket drive. Mary emphasized that there are many opportunities for anyone in the community to become involved with Miracle League. “We really rely on community support. We especially encourage younger people to get involved with our volunteer buddy program that partners a young person with a Miracle League athlete,” she noted.
Miracle League welcomes athletes of all ages and abilities from all neighborhoods and communities. Athletes do not need to be Northampton Township residents. The Miracle League facilities are available for other groups that have special needs to use for sporting activities after obtaining permission and approval from the township.
For more information, visit mlnorthampton.com or on Facebook @MiracleLeagueNorthamptonTwpPA. For information on programs contact Lenny Fisher mlbuckssoftball@gmail.com or to get involved or volunteer contact, Mary Camp at MLnorthamptontwp@gmail.com.