TAMPA, Fla. — With children out of school for the summer, there can be a lot of downtime, making staying out of trouble much more difficult for some. However, two local organizations are joining forces to give local children an outlet through baseball.
“With the Tampa Terminators, we’re terminating illiteracy, ignorance, and incarceration. What we do every Tuesday night, we get with these kids, we mentor them about the pitfalls of inner-city situations. So, if we can keep these kids active through baseball and also with the educational piece, it’ll keep them on track to fulfill their dreams,” said Coach Jamie Anderson, founder of the Tampa Terminators.
Coach Jamie Anderson created the Tampa Terminators in 2020. He got his start in 1978 playing with the Belmont Heights Little League in East Tampa before going pro with the Colorado Rockies.
Nowadays, he’s trying to provide a safe space to build up inner-city children. “When you look in the mirror, you have to tell yourself you are the best in the world,” he told a group of kids. “You have to tell yourself that, literally. That’s a positive attitude. Even when you’re watching the big leaguers on T.V., you have to tell yourself, ‘I can hit him. I’m going to hit him one day!"
Coach Anderson has joined forces with Major League baseball player Mychal Givens and his organization, the Givens Back Foundation. Givens has played on several teams, including the New York Mets and Baltimore Orioles. I’m just a guy that wants to give back to my community,” said Givens.
Every Tuesday at 6 p.m., dozens of kids meet at Rome & Sligh Park in Tampa to learn life lessons and train hard. “Helps me stay focused in school, be a better player out on the field and helps me focus on what I want to do in life,” said 11-year-old Chico Anderson, Coach Anderson’s son.
“Me focusing on baseball and not all that other stuff outside of baseball – like all that bad stuff in the streets, you know. It keeps me focused outside of that stuff because if I don’t, it can get me in lots of trouble,” said 13-year-old Camden Disbrow.
Though the kids are receiving mentorship, their coaches will be the first to tell you they’re getting just as much out of this as the kids are.
“Baseball’s one thing. Becoming men, becoming contributors to society, that’s what we’re out here for,” said Coach Mike Smith to a group of kids. “We’re helping y’all to become better men, to help y’all make better decisions than we made, to give y’all a better opportunity than we had. I tell y’all every game when we're finished or done with a tournament, ‘Thank you, guys, for allowing me to coach y’all and trust in me,’ because y’all give me an escape that I need.”
Click here for more information on the Givens Back Foundation.
