Buddy Baseball group at City Council Meeting:  Bayonne Recreation Superintendent Pete Amadeo (at far right of photo) was joined by Buddy Baseball players and supporters at the Bayonne City Council meeting on August 14.  The Council awarded a contract for upgrades to the 11^th Street Oval, the location of Bayonne’s Buddy Baseball games.

          At its meeting on August 14, the Bayonne City Council awarded a $2.4 million contract for upgrades to the 11^th Street Oval, a playing field located on Avenue E.  The contractor with the successful bid is Picerno-Giordano of Kenilworth.  The project aims to create an appropriate facility for Buddy Baseball, a program for children with special needs.   The upgrades will include a new playing area, dugouts, bleachers, fencing, and handicap access to and from the field and playground.

Mayor Jimmy Davis said, “I am very excited that construction will start soon on transforming the 11th Street Field into a Field of Dreams for our great Buddy Baseball program.  I want to thank our Congressional representatives, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, the Hudson County Open Space Fund, and local developers for providing the funding for this $2.4 million project.  I look forward to the completion of this important facility for our special needs kids.”

At the Council meeting, Recreation Superintendent Pete Amadeo spoke to the Council Members about Buddy Baseball.  He thanked all of the levels of government that worked in partnership to fund the upgrades to the 11^th Street Oval.  Several of the Buddy Baseball players accompanied him at the meeting.  All of the City Council Members and several other Bayonne officials waved with foam fingers to show their support for Buddy Baseball.  City Planner Suzanne Mack stressed the importance of providing opportunities to special needs children, saying, “It changes their lives.”  Francesca Giarratana, Chair of the Hudson County Open Space Committee, represented the county at the meeting. 

The Buddy Baseball League, a program in Bayonne’s Recreation Division, began in 2015.  It is a program for Bayonne’s developmentally and physically challenged youth, helping them to enjoy the full benefits of baseball in an athletic environment structured to their abilities.  Buddy Baseball teaches the players baseball and softball, teamwork, sportsmanship, and fair play.  It also offers them the chance to socialize while strengthening their self-esteem. 

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