There were free slats, cappuccinos and matcha drinks for parents. There was a truck filled with eye test devices to help children with vision problems or missing glasses. There were free gloves, t-shirts and other clothes to distribute to children. There was a catering truck offering free burgers and fries.
There were autograph signatures with one of the best left -handed launchers in baseball and one of the best baseball strikers. There was a raffle for dodgers tickets, gloves and bales signed. There was a stick cage to take swings. There was the 2021 Dodgers championship trophy.
The Fried Foundation, Harvard-Westlake and other sponsors outdone themselves on Saturday in Encino trying to give 80 members of the Altadena Little League and their parents affected by the late Eaton one afternoon of distraction and comfort in the field of The O’malley family.
“We saw a need and decided to act,” said Jonathan Fried, the father of the New York Yankees launcher, Max Fried, a graduate of Harvard-Westlake who took photos and signs of autographs.
The appreciation was real, and also for friends who were finally able to see each other after weeks without interaction due to the fire that started on January 7.
“Is your house ok?” asked for a boy.
“No. My mother’s house has disappeared. My father’s house is fine,” said another boy.
March 1 is supposed to be the day of the league. The final tests have still not occurred because the fields are not available, but Chris Swan, member of the board of directors, said at an emergency meeting of the board of directors, “everyone was completely played “.
Max Fried, who played Encino Little League, said: “It has nothing to do with me. I just help a community in which we all grew up.”
His good friend Christian Yelich from Milwaukee Brewers, the most useful player in the 2018 National League, also went to sign autographs.
The organizers of the event were the mothers of the Harvard -Westlake baseball players – Casey Kim, Natasha Tronstein, Monica Kirchner and Donna Tetreault. They were running while their sons played a winter match. They expected to feed more than 300 people by the end of the day.
More importantly, it was a chance for children to see each other.
“I want to see my friends a bit,” said Louis Bradshaw, 10, who has been without a school for more than two weeks.
The event was kept secret until Saturday, it would therefore be strictly for children and parents.
“Children are happy. This is the most important thing,” said Kirchner.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.