Minnesota woman chooses longest road to major leagues: umpiring

A few summers ago I traveled to South Korea to play in an international women's baseball tournament. There I had the honor of getting to know and playing alongside Emma Charlesworth-Seiler. We enjoyed talking about our mutual love of international cuisine and she was a kind, humble and inspiring older teammate. I'm so thrilled to watch her start her baseball umpiring career. Go Emma - show them what hard work and a love of the game can do!

http://www.twincities.com/2017/06/10/minnesota-woman-chooses-longest-road-to-major-leagues-umpiring/

Hopkins native Emma Charlesworth-Seiler umpires her first professional baseball game on May 15, 2017 at CHS Field, an exhibition game between the St. Paul Saints and the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks. (Courtesy of the St. Paul Saints)

Hopkins native Emma Charlesworth-Seiler umpires her first professional baseball game on May 15, 2017 at CHS Field, an exhibition game between the St. Paul Saints and the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks. (Courtesy of the St. Paul Saints)

Children's Champions Event at Menlo College, May 20th, 2017

Dear Friends,

I am thrilled to be supporting Children’s Champions this year! This super-fun event will be held on Saturday, May 20th from 11 AM – 2 PM, at Menlo College in Menlo Park.

We would love for you to join us and *the KIDS* at this special event.

Ten Stanford University sports teams come in and run drills and clinics with kids. Professional athletes, including SF 49er Joe Staley who will be receiving the Change Maker award, and mascots (Lou Seal, Sourdough Sam, Q) are also at the event. There will be face painting, balloon art, arts & crafts, bubbles, lunch, snacks, drinks and SO much more!

We also sponsor 200 at-risk kids at the event. Please come and join us and help make this a truly memorable event for them!

Tickets available through www.childrens-champions.eventbrite.com

Thank you for making a difference for all children in the Bay Area!

Celebrating local Women's Achievements - Katherine Gordon and Brie Mathers

Celebrating 2 amazing women who in their own ways challenge the system.

Katherine Gordon is founder of the 3 Percent Conference.
Here is what they do:
"Until The 3% Movement came along, only 3% of all U.S. Creative Directors in advertising were women. In a world where women influence upwards of 80% of consumer spending and 60% of social media sharing, this is business suicide. Through a mix of content, community and professional development, they've helped raise the number of female Creative Directors to 11% while giving agencies a clear road map of ways to champion female creative talent and leadership."

And Brie Mathers founder of Love the Skin You're In, a movement to teach young girls media literacy, to challenge advertising, and what Hollywood feeds us as "the truth".

Thank you Katherine and Brie for inspiring us and making real change!

Congratulations Tara!

When I was young during basketball summer camps she taught me about teamwork, having a positive attitude and playing smart.

Congratulations Tara VanDerveer on your 1000th win. Joining Coach Kryzewski & Pat Summit in so many game wins, you are truly great.
When you were a player at Indiana you enrolled in Bobby Knight's coaching clinics, the only woman surrounded by 500 guys.

You are a feminist pioneer hero. 🏀😊🏀

National Girls & Women in Sports Day

On February 3 it was National Girls & Women in Sports Day.

"NGWSD 2017 recognizes athletes, coaches, AD's, parents and lawmakers who are committed to expanding the opportunity for all girls and women". See this video from Stanford recognizing the achievements of their women in sports. 😊

Put Me In Coach

Coaches have the power to make a real impact in players' lives. So please put us in, even though we're girls. We love the game of baseball just as much as the boys.

My friends and I helped with this film last July at the Girls Baseball National Tournament in California. I think the filmmakers and creatives on the team did a great job in capturing how we feel when we play. I pitched that last ball to my friend Kendra Levesque (Number 1) one cold and foggy San Francisco night. 

Let's Go Mets, NOT!

Let's Go Mets, NOT.
The women who played in the AAGPBL were and are heroes. They deserve better than this.

The Mets had their rookies dress up as female baseball players from "A League of Their Own," a fictionalized movie centered on the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2016/10/04/dicaro-hey-mlb-stop-hazing-men-by-dressing-them-up-as-women/

Short Film explaining how there is still Gender Inequality in Baseball

My big brother made this 5 minute film based on interviews he did this summer. It's a "teaser" for a longer documentary that he'll make about girls who play baseball.
He explains "Baseball is known as America's national pastime, but, in reality, half of the country is excluded. Most people implicitly assume that baseball is for boys and softball is for girls. But an increasing number of girls and women are refusing to accept the status quo."

Please watch. We still have to deal with inequality in many areas.