@MizzouBaseball Visits Golisano Children’s Hospital in Fort Myers
2/22/2016 11:22:00 AM | Baseball
Fresh off of an opening-weekend series against Seton Hall, Mizzou Baseball remained in the state of Florida this week as part of a nine-game road trip to open the season. But it's not all about baseball for Mizzou as the team spent its day off Monday at Golisano Children's Hospital in Fort Myers, Fla., visiting sick children. Sophomore OF Trey Harris spearheaded the initiative while back in Columbia prior to the season.
"I used to come down here to Fort Myers for travel ball and things like that and it was always a great experience to be able to go to a children's hospital," Harris said. "Adam Kiel (of Mizzou's Total Person Program) is our community service person and I just went up to him and asked him if there was any way we could go to a children's hospital and he pretty much took it from there. He and Coach Pratte got together and they got it done."
Mizzou was greeted at Golisano Children's Hospital by three Child Care Specialists – Carly, Hannah and Mia – and the team broke into three groups and toured three different areas of the hospital, including the intensive care unit, oncology, post-surgery and hematology wings. There were children of all ages, from 18 months to 18 years old. Harris was with senior pitcher Austin Tribby and their group toured the ICU and the impact on Mizzou's players was evident watching them interact with the children.
"The thing that made it really just worth it to me is seeing the smile on their faces and making them forget about whatever they are in there for," Tribby said. "It makes it really special."
Harris echoed Tribby's sentiments.
"As soon as you walk in, the smiles on the kids' face, even if they don't like baseball, they love it while you are there," he said. "It makes it well worth it. We met some kids who just wanted all of our posters and wanted everything we could give them. It was that moment right there, seeing them smile because that means they forgot about whatever they are in there for."
Despite the fun the players had talking with and interacting with the children, the entire experience offered the players perspective.
"No matter if you go 0-for-9 or 4-for-4, it always put things back into perspective that you still had a chance to play that you still have a chance to play," Harris said. "I thought it would be a good moment for all of us to come back home and come back to earth kind of thing mentally and I think it was worth it."
