08/09/2026
And I don’t even know how to put yesterday into words.
As I was standing there and watching it all happen, I was reminded exactly why we do this and that yesterday wasn’t really about softball.
It was about Mia. Mia, who is fighting something no child should ever have to fight. Mia, who was released from the hospital early yesterday afternoon and could have very easily gone home, crawled into bed and rested. Instead, she came to the ballpark. She came out into the heat. She smiled. She watched. She engaged.
She reminded every single one of us what strength actually looks like. That girl was the MVP before the first pitch was ever thrown.
Mia, I hope someday you understand what you did yesterday. You gave all of us something much bigger than a reason to play softball. You gave us a reason to come together. A reason to fight a little harder. A reason to believe that even when things are incredibly hard, there is still room for joy, laughter and hope.
To Mia and her family, thank you for letting us be part of your fight. Thank you for trusting us with something so important. We hope yesterday reminded you that you don’t have to carry this alone. There are so many people standing behind you, beside you and praying for better days ahead.
To every team and every player who came out and played, Thank YOU! We could it have been successful without you. You gave up your Saturday to sweat in the heat, compete, laugh, cheer and play for something bigger than yourselves. Every at bat, every inning and every dollar raised mattered.
To every business and person who donated, thank you for believing in this cause. The raffle prizes, silent auction items, gift cards, baskets, tickets, bats, jerseys and every other donation helped turn an idea into something that can actually make a difference for Mia and her family.
To Lions Park, thank you for giving us a place to bring everyone together, for allowing us to host this tournament and for working concessions and taking care of everyone throughout the day. We are incredibly grateful.
And then there are my people.
The ones who showed up before I even had to ask.
The ones who helped me set up, haul things, organize things, run raffles, create brackets, manage the silent auction, answer questions, fix problems and clean up when it was all over. The ones who looked at me when I was overwhelmed and simply said, “I’ve got it.”
The ones who encouraged me when I doubted myself, and reminded me that it didn’t have to be perfect to be meaningful.
You know who you are. And I hope you know that I could not have done this without you!
There is a lot of work that goes into putting something like this together. Sometimes people see the tournament, the games, the raffles and the crowd and don’t see everything that happens behind the scenes.
But I do.
And I will never forget the people who showed up for us so that we could show up for Mia.
To everyone who bought a raffle ticket, placed a bid, donated, shared a post, bought concessions, came to watch, played a game or simply stood on the sidelines and cheered — thank you.
Every single one of you became part of Mia’s story yesterday.
And maybe that’s the most beautiful part of all. One person can’t cure cancer. One tournament can’t make it disappear. But a community can make sure a family doesn’t feel alone while they fight it.
Yesterday, we didn’t just play softball.
We showed Mia that she is loved. We showed her family that they are supported.
And we reminded them that they have an entire community standing behind them.
That is Brya Strong!!! There was no better way to honor her yesterday!
Now that I’m sobbing (again)….
Until next year!
