SPREADING THE GOSPEL: Rotarian and Shoalhaven Cricket life member Bob Webster with some of the North Nowra Public School students who will be taking part in the DreamCricket program (from left) Fraser Jennings, Victoria Avery, Jacob Potts-Kinchela, David Steele, Rowan Hodge, Jacob Rose and Kynan Miller (front).
A SPECIAL fun day to introduce local children with special needs to the sport of cricket will be staged on Wednesday.
The Rotary clubs of Bomaderry and South Nowra have combined to put on a DreamCricket day at North Nowra Public and Havenlee schools.
Rotarian and Shoalhaven Cricket life member Bob Webster said the day’s aim was to give children with disabilities the opportunity to experience the sport.
“We will be running clinics for the kids to try to teach them some cricket skills and above all else they will be having fun,” he said.
“The DreamCricket program is all about getting kids involved and giving them the chance to play the sport.”
More than 60 children from a number of local schools are expected to take part in the program which, along with a number of Rotarians, will also feature members of the Shoalhaven Cricket under 16 representative team and Shoalhaven ricket coaching director Darren Beckett.
DreamCricket originated in the United States.
In 2005, executive trustee of the Movement Disorder Foundation, Dr Roland Bigg, began discussions with Lexington Rotarian Tom Ashford about providing opportunities for US children with disabilities to play baseball.
Rotary was championing a program called Miracle League to give children with disabilities the opportunity to play baseball.
In Lexington in 2007, Dr Bigg saw the value and momentum developed by the Rotary-backed Miracle League.
With the support of the other trustees of the Movement Disorder Foundation, the Miracle League concept was translated into the Australian setting, and in 2008 the Movement Disorder Foundation approached the Rotary clubs of the Southern Highlands with the concept that evolved to be called DreamCricket.
The Movement Disorder Foundation provided significant seed funding to back the plan, and Lexington Rotary Club provided initial concept development support.