First Inning is committed to the expansion of opportunity and cultural connections for the baseball community in Cambodia by helping to create access and opportunity for participation in the game. Beginning as a simple goal to collect and deliver donations of equipment overseas, we very quickly saw the impact of our efforts and knew our potential was much greater.
By forming a partnership with our fiscal sponsor, Cambodia Town Lowell, Inc, of Lowell, Massachusets, we access the organization and leadership of an established and connected nonprofit with footprints in both the Khmer communities of the United States and overseas in Cambodia. This partnership also helps ensure that our work remains grounded in and reflective of Khmer culture, and that our tax-deductible donations are put to use in a directly impactful manner.
Our Objectives
First Inning’s mission to enrich the lives of youth and adult baseball players in Cambodia is rooted in three objectives: providing equipment to clubs and organizations, growing opportunity by supporting the development of youth and community instruction and leagues, and expanding access by promoting the development of more stand-alone and multi-use playing facilities in the country.
Provide Equipment
The first barrier to learning and loving baseball is access to equipment. Gloves, balls, bats, and safety equipment are not attainable to the majority of Cambodians due to a lack of historical participation in the sport and extremely limited financial resources for most families and community institutions. We seek to bridge that gap by providing serviceable equipment free of charge to existing and startup baseball organizations throughout Cambodia.
Grow Opportunity
In the few years that baseball has been a presence in Cambodia, it has given the members of the national teams opportunities they would not have otherwise had to travel out of the country for international training and competition, and has seen two players sign contracts to join professional organizations in Japan. First Inning seeks to expand these opportunities by growing the sport throughout the provinces of Cambodia with a centralized youth development league feeding into school-based and provincial competitive play.
Expand Access
There are currently very few locations in Cambodia available for baseball participation. In addition to supporting the creation and organization of widespread youth and adult instructional and competitive programs, our long-term goal is to develop more playing facilities in the country by opening access to existing recreational spaces and eventually building new, high-quality baseball diamonds and multi-use facilities that can be shared with other sports programs.