Thanks to a collaboration between MLB Japan and the Tyler Foundation, on Friday, Nov. 9th, two MLB players, Akinori Iwamura of the Tampa Bay Rays and Takashi Saito of the LA Dodgers visited cancer patients and other children at the National Center for Child Health and Development. We wish all of our supporters could have walked around the wards with us and the players. The cameras were only allowed in for a small press conference afterwards, but seeing how happy the visit made the children literally brought us to tears. Something so simple as a smile and autograph from a baseball player truly DOES make a difference in the lives of kids in hospital.
Below are our English translations of three newspapers articles which featured the visit.
Sports Daily, Saturday 10th November 2007
Iwamura and Saito Rays Encouraged the Children
Photo caption: Iwamura (left) and Saito visited the Center for Child Health and Development, to interact with children undergoing treatment.
National infielder Akinori Iwamura (28) and Dodgers pitcher Takashi Saito (37) on July 9, visited the National Center for Child Health and Development in Setagaya, Tokyo, to encourage children undergoing treatment. Both of them support the activities of the Tyler Foundation, which works on improving pediatric health care environments, and visited the hospital in their uniforms. They gave out towels and baseball cards during the interaction.
Iwamura smiled, “I thought it would be hard to see their reality, but actually I got a sense of energy and power from the children.”
On that day, the new team name has ben announced, “Look at my face, and be reminded of the devil” Saito joked, “Devil … I’m more scared of the children than of him,” he laughed.
Sports Bulletin, November 10, 2007 (Saturday)
Iwamura, Saito Make Hospital Visit
Devil Rays infielder Akinori Iwamura (28) and Dodgers pitcher Takashi Saito (37) visited the National Center for Child Health and Development in Setagaya, Tokyo, to show their sympathy for children undergoing treatment. They gave out baseball cards.
Tokyo Chunichi Sports, Saturday November 10th 2007
Don’t Give in to Illness – Iwamura and Saito Give Encouragement
Photo caption: Akinori Iwamura (left) and Takashi Saito visited the National Center for Child Health and Development, and interacted with children undergoing treatment.
At the National Center for Child Health Dodgers pitcher Takashi Saito (37) and Rays (previously Tampa Bay Devil Rays) third baseman Akinori Iwamura (28) on July 9, visited the National Center for Child Health and Development, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, to touch the hearts of 122 children receiving treatment for illnesses such as childhood diseases. They were realizing a request made by the Tyler Foundation, a private non-profit organization (NPO) founded by Ms. Kimberly Forsythe-Ferris who had a son who died of childhood leukemia.
Saito is the father of two children, and Iwamura’s first child was born seven months ago.
They spent over an hour and a half on each ward, and while giving words of encouragement to the children fighting illness they handed out Baseball team logo gift cards and towels.
Saito said, “When I lived in Yokohama I also met children who for various reasons could not live with their parents. I want to help, be it in the US or Japan.” Iwamura also said, “I feel a sense of strength from these children’s tenacity. I want to do more things like this with whatever spare time I have from now on.”
Iwamura “the devil hunter” said to children fighting illness that they should be their own “devil hunter.” About the change of the team’s name from Devil Rays to Rays, he said, “Look at my face and remember the devil.” Saito jibed, “Devil…I’m more scared of the kids than of him!”
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