Kickball may come across as all fun and games but in recent years it has had a more serious purpose.
The sport is one of the main fundraising avenues for the Cayman Islands Humane Society. Cayman’s main animal shelter usually gets thousands of dollars in proceeds from its annual kickball tournament, which fund various programmes.
One of the people who appreciates the effect the sport has on the shelter is humane society president Carolyn Parker. A special constable with the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, Parker states kickball is a worthwhile endeavour.
“At the humane society we have petapalooza [a music festival], furball [a gala dinner and auction] and the fashion show,” Parker said. “Each event attracts different people. Kickball can attract a different crowd, the sporty kind. The participants might not have pets but they support us by supporting the tournament and having fun. It’s a really fun event.
“Last year we had it December time but that time was booked up this year. With this year’s event we’ve found the right time of year. We hope to expand it, expand the games part of it and open it up to locals.”
Joining Parker for the 2012 tournament was humane society director Lesley Walker along with volunteers Kelley Verwey and Justine Riseley. All sold a variety of refreshments and received donations with an eye towards the society’s dog show in March.
This year’s competition attracted eight teams, from local companies such as KPMG, at the Field of Dreams facility in George Town. Cayman Sports Authority were tournament organizers and had Andre Morgan serve as umpire. Maples and Calder emerged the new champions, taking the crown from 2011 winners the Doghouse Devils.
Local athletes like Nicholas Roberts, Richard Campbell and Gabriel Godet (not to be confused with brother Dominic, who also played football) would push Maples past BDO (who lost in the finals 2-1) and third-place WestStar TV Kick Stars (who were guided by TV presenters Kevin Morales and Ben Meade).
BDO had talent of their own in basketball player Nathan Smith and hockey star Randy Cannon. Smith states it was a great tournament for a good cause.
“The kickball tournament is a great charity event,” Smith said. “I caught myself reminiscing while playing a little bit. I haven’t played it since elementary school. Maples were a tough, athletic team and WestStar were good fun to play against.”
Joining in on the fun was team-mate and wife Jennifer. The couple recently moved to Cayman from the US and Jennifer enjoyed herself on the field saying, “our guys on BDO were from everywhere and we all played and had a good time.”
Smith has caught on to the local sports scene in a short span of time. He guided Charterland to the division two championship in the national men’s basketball league, organizes pick-up basketball at Camana Bay and is an avid frisbee player. In his eyes, kickball is a more comical task than scoring a basket or catching a disc.
“I’m only in my second year in Cayman and this is the first time I’ve played kickball. I like to keep it light-hearted and it’s the kind of sport everyone can pick up quickly. You can find that you’re quickly having fun.”
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