Players on the Massapequa High School varsity baseball team say that sometimes it’s OK to join forces with a rival. For the fifth year, the Chiefs, led by coach Thomas Sheedy, have partnered with another Nassau County school to raise money for a good cause.
Massapequa played Oceanside High School in a regular season night game at John Burns Park on April 27. The annual Leukemia and Lymphoma Society charity game served as a fundraiser for the organization, with both teams supporting the cause. Fans could buy shirts which on the front read “Play Ball for a Cure” and on the back featured the two teams’ logos and “Two Historic Rivals. One Night. One Goal.”
Chiefs players were also stationed in the gymnasium lobby during the week of April 24 to sell shirts and collect donations through the Ball for the Wall initiative. Students and staff members who contributed wrote their names on paper baseballs, which were hung across from the gym.
Fundraising for the effort continues on May 6 at Baseball Day when all district baseball teams, from seventh grade through varsity, play at John Burns Park. Once all donations are in, the Diamond Club booster organization sends a check to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Senior baseball player Daniel Gdanski said, “As athletes in Massapequa, we have a responsibility to help the community and the people around us.”
Photo Caption: Massapequa High School varsity baseball players, from left, Christopher Wassen, Anthony Faldetta and Daniel Gdanski collected donations for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Photo courtesy of Massapequa School District
