South Surrey White Rock Minor Softball Association Welcomes The Start Of The 2013 Season

SURREY, British Columbia - April 4, 2013 - PRLog -- Surrey B.C., Canada – April 4, 2013: South Surrey White Rock Minor Softball Association (“SSWRMSA”) is pleased to announce that 2013 Opening Day celebrations will be held on Saturday April 6th at 10:00 am at Sunnyside Park located at 15455 - 26 Avenue in Surrey B.C.

Local residents and media are invited to attend the festivities along with our 416 players representing 39 teams, 65 volunteer coaches and 16 volunteer executives. Special guests that will be in attendance to help us welcome the 2013 season include Gordon Hogg, provincial MLA representing Surrey-White Rock, City of White Rock Mayor Wayne Baldwin and City of Surrey Councillor Mary Martin. Mark Donnelly (Mr. O Canada) who frequently sings the national anthems at Vancouver Canuck hockey games will kick off an exciting day of softball action with his inspiring rendition of our Canadian national anthem. Following the opening ceremonies there will be 17 games played throughout the day.

SSWRMSA is committed to maintaining a strong and viable association. We are focused on building a strong base of younger players and coaches through our first class coach and player development programs. Player registration for 2013 has increased compared to 2012 season. The largest increase in player registration occurred in our very successful Learn-to-Play program for players under 6 years old.  For the 2013 season, 48 percent of our players are between the ages of 5 and 10 years old.  “We are very pleased with this increase in player registration.  The future is bright for youth softball in South Surrey White Rock” said SSWRMSA President David Harris.

SSWRMSA PARTNERS WITH THE UGANDA BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL ASSOCIATION

SSWRMSA is pleased to announce a partnership with the Uganda Baseball and Softball Association in sponsoring two female softball coaches to come to Canada and train with our association coaches for the 2014 softball season.

“Ruth Hoffman approached our association with this initiative and our executives voted unanimously to support this very worthy endeavour. Girls in Uganda do not have a lot of opportunities to participate in organized sports.  We believe that SOFTBALL can make a POSITIVE difference in the lives of young people and we are proud to help bring this wonderful gift of sport to young women in Uganda.” said Harris. “This initiative mirrors our association’s belief that better training for our coaches will result in better trained athletes. We want our athletes to reach their full potential and have a lifelong love of the sport.” Harris continued.

Ruth Hoffman is the brain child behind the heartwarming initiative that resulted in the Langley Little League baseball team travelling to Uganda to play their Little League team after the Uganda team was denied entry into U.S. to compete in the 2011 Little League World Series.

ABOUT SOUTH SURREY WHITE ROCK MINOR SOFTBALL ASSOCIATION
South Surrey White Rock Minor Softball Association was established as a registered not‑for‑profit society in June 1994 and played our first season in 1995. The expressed purpose of the Society is to provide a healthy environment for the members of the Society to learn the fundamentals of the game of softball, and to foster the growth of honesty, integrity, self‑esteem, teamwork, and the belief of service to our community. SSWRMSA offers programs for boys and girls ages 5 to 22 years old.

On Behalf of South Surrey White Rock Minor Softball Association

Thomas Bell

Director of Communication

sswrthunderfastpitch@gmail.com

For more information regarding SSWRMSA and player registration please visit our website at www.sswrmsa.ca