Highlights from the Carl Jadunandan Memorial Tournament 2009
Welcome >>

Click Here for the Tournament Flyer 

The threat of rain did not dampen the spirits of the 39 ten and eleven year
 olds tykes, who played baseball at the Brockridge Community Park last
 Saturday, July 25, 2009. It was the first "Carl Rayaz Jadunandan Memorial
 Tournament" held to give house league players a chance to experience the
 thrill of playing in a mid-summer tournament.  Carl who played baseball in
 Pickering for over 10 years passed away two years ago at the age of 22. His
 parents wanted to do something in his memory for the baseball community. 
Last year, they erected a memorial bench at the Kirkey diamond in the park,
 with the help of the City of Pickering. 
   
The opening ceremony was done by Wayne Arthurs, MPP for
 Pickering/Scarborough East, Lisa Giblin of the PBA
 and Jennifer O'Connell, City Councillor for Ward 1, who threw the first
 ceremonial pitch. Best wishes also came from the Mayor's Office, Dave Ryan,
 and Dan McTeague, MP for Pickering/Scarborough East, who couldn't attend due
 to vacation. 
   
The 10 and 11 year olds players got some valuable baseball development
 skills from Nigel Wilson, former MLB player, and Marc Picard, Pitching Coach
 for Team Ontario of the Competitive Edge in Ajax. The line-up for autographs
 from Nigel and Marc also added excitement to the event. Many senior level
 players from Team Ontario were also there to give a helping hand during the
 pre-lunch skills clinic. Luckily, the weather held up enough to allow the
 players the morning game, the skills clinic, lunch and then their semi-final
 game.  The 4 teams that played were sponsored by Source for Sports, Double V
 Contracting, Boyer Pontiac Pickering, and the Ontario Power Generation. 
   
"The children and their parents were very thrilled to get the expertise of
 Nigel, Marc and their cohorts.  I overheard some parents saying that what
 the kids learned in the 45 minute clinic will stay with them for a long
 time" said Gail Sharpe, VP and Director of House League. 
   
"Now that we've seen the tremendous response from the kids and their
 parents, hopefully we can make this an annual event" said John Smeelen,
 President of the PBA. All the players in all four teams received a special
 medal for participating while the Boyer Pickering team took first place. The
 Jadunandan family wishes to thank all the volunteers, Team Ontario, the PBA
 and the children for their help and participation and looks forward to 2010.

Click Here to see the photos on Flickr