Friends of Baseball’s Mis­sion is to offer Oregon’s eco­nom­i­cally and geo­graph­i­cally chal­lenged chil­dren enhanced oppor­tu­ni­ties for social inter­ac­tion, aca­d­e­mic suc­cess and phys­i­cal and men­tal well-being through par­tic­i­pa­tion in youth base­ball and soft­ball team programs.

Friends of Base­ball was founded in 2005 by a father, son and Board of Trustees dri­ven by their pas­sion to give back to the com­mu­nity of youth base­ball and soft­ball that they love. Friends of Base­ball and their part­ner providers offer league-sustaining goods, ser­vices and in-kind sup­port to youth orga­ni­za­tions that exhibit com­pelling need. Youth base­ball and soft­ball pro­grams face many ongo­ing chal­lenges includ­ing loss of play­ing venues, dimin­ished com­mu­nity resources and increased respon­si­bil­ity for field prepa­ra­tion to sim­ply play “their game.” To meet these grow­ing needs, Friends of Base­ball has received des­ig­na­tion as a 501©(3) non­profit in order to bet­ter part­ner with Fam­ily and Cor­po­rate Foun­da­tions and enhance our finan­cial resources for those teams and regions cur­rently underserved. 

Through their desire to cre­ate a “safety net” for leagues that find their pro­grams at risk, seed fund­ing has been estab­lished by FOB’s founders. These funds, along with the gen­er­ous sup­port of those who share our vision — “our part­ner providers” — have allowed us to pro­vide col­lab­o­ra­tive sup­port, begin­ning in N.W. Ore­gon. We are now seek­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties through addi­tional con­tri­bu­tions fundrais­ing and dona­tions to build upon our ini­tial “foot­print” by expand­ing our impact through­out Oregon. 

Friends of Base­ball began nearly 30 years ago. Our founders, Keenan and Ben Long­cor, share a life­long love of base­ball that strength­ened the bond between them. Through youth base­ball, Ben and Keenan were able to spend time together, talk to each other, and reflect together on the life lessons that base­ball has to offer us all. Friends of Base­ball grew out of a pas­sion for this sport, and the rela­tion­ship between a father and son.

Whether through some­thing in youth base­ball, or in shar­ing the excite­ment of a major league game, the years brought Keenan and Ben dozens of trips to ball­parks in the Pacific North­west and around the United States. They cre­ated mem­o­ries, shared vic­tory and loss, and had the oppor­tu­nity to learn val­ues, sports­man­ship and a mutual under­stand­ing found in the sim­plic­ity of a time-tested game of integrity.

Many years later, it is time to give back to the sport and com­mu­nity that helped to cre­ate these life­long mem­o­ries … and for them to begin again. The found­ing hope is that through Friends of Base­ball, other par­ents and chil­dren will kin­dle a sim­i­lar bond found in a shared pas­sion, vision, com­mu­ni­ca­tion, inspi­ra­tion, and through com­mon understanding.

Want to find out more? Check out our Vision State­ment.