Our Highlights
Summer Series #1: enCourage Kids’ Night at Citi Field
17th Annual enCourage Kids Night at Citi Field
The day started off with rain and storms, but as the start time approached for enCourage Kids’ 17th Annual Night at Citi Field, the sun came out and the weather was nothing short of perfect. On Thursday, June 13th, over 800 enCourage Kids supporters and families gathered for a great night cheering on the New York Mets against the St. Louis Cardinals. Each child was greeted with an enCourage Kids’ t-shirt and a foam finger, before being shown to our private area in the Bullpen Plaza full of hamburgers, hot dogs, popcorn, and more.
While they were eating, the kids and families had the opportunity to wander around to have their face painted, watch a clown work his magic, and get tattoos from a volunteer and a Mets’ Wife. They even got the chance to create their own signs to cheer on the Mets with poster board and markers. Right before the game began, Mr. Met stopped by for a special visit. Each of the kids and their families had the chance to meet him and take their picture before heading into the stadium to take their seats.
Each year, we get the special opportunity to let one of our enCourage kids throw out the first pitch to start the game. This year, the honor went to Dorian Solimano. She went out on the field with her dad and threw quite the underhanded pitch, showing off her skills. After taking pictures, everyone headed up to their seats and the game began.
With our seats so close to the field, we kept our eye on the skies to see if we could catch a homerun ball at any point during the game. A few flew our way and one even landed at the front of our section for one of our supporters to take home.
It was a great night full of fun, food, and baseball. Thank you to our families, supporters, sponsors, volunteers, and staff who made this night possible! We can’t wait to see you next year. Go Mets!
Child Life Spotlight
In our mission, it says we support the Child Life Community, but many people ask “What is Child Life?” In this section, we hope to shine a light on the work Child Life Specialists are doing in hospitals around the country and how enCourage Kids is supporting them in this work.
A Child Life Specialist is a trained professional that works closely with children and their families in a hospital or other medical setting, providing support and helping them cope during traumatic and difficult situations. Child Life Specialists develop coping strategies for pediatric patients and their family members to decrease the stress and anxiety that comes with the challenges of hospitalization. Their goal is to make a hospital experience as comfortable and positive as possible. One of their most important roles is to explain a child’s diagnosis and/or treatment in a way that the child will be able to understand and know exactly what is going on.
Family Outing to Six Flags Great Adventure
On Wednesday, July 10th, our enCourage Kids families enjoyed a fun family outing at Six Flags Great Adventure! Over 520 people were in attendance, riding roller coasters, having dance parties, and eating a delicious lunch. Six Flags generously handed out superhero capes to all our kids and they visited with all kinds of characters! enCourage Kids mom, Darcy, said “I just wanted to send a great big thank you for the Great Adventure Trip. My kids of course absolutely loved it and you can tell by all the smiles. Thank you so much again. We always enjoy your events that we can go to!!”
