Good Sports Honors Outstanding Partners at Annual Legends of the Ball at Fenway Park

Source: Good Sports Boston, April 3, 2013 - More than 350 business and sports industry leaders joined the national nonprofit Good Sports for its 10th Annual Legends of the Ball fundraiser on Tuesday, April 2. Local sports media icons Glenn Ordway and Tom Caron emceed the cocktail reception, dinner and live and silent auctions, which ultimately raised $210,000 for the organization - 27 percent more than last year's event proceeds. Good Sports, dedicated to providing athletic equipment, footwear and apparel to disadvantaged youth across the country, is also celebrating its 10th anniversary as a nonprofit, and a milestone of serving 500,000 kids. Good Sports honored two of its most prominent partners at the event, Easton-Bell Sports and The Atlanta Falcons Youth Foundation, both recognized for their impressive work in youth sports and fitness nationwide. Easton-Bell donated more than $500,000 worth of equipment to organizations in 20 different states in 2012, allowing 23,000 disadvantaged youth to take the field and become more active. Since partnering with Good Sports in 2010, the Atlanta Falcons Youth Foundation has donated more than $350,000 in sports and fitness equipment to youth across the state of Georgia. Easton-Bell earned the "Good Sport in Philanthropy" Award and the Falcons Youth Foundation won the "Good Sport in Sports" Award for their generous work. The live and silent auctions featured unique experiential items, including: an opportunity to play backyard Wiffle Ball with Red Sox third baseman Will Middlebrooks, which auctioned for $5,600; a private dinner with Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, which auctioned for $4,500; a chance to watch a 2013 Red Sox game in the same luxury box as General Manager Ben Cherington, with a winning bid of $3,000; a 10-person private dinner at Stephanie's on Newbury or Stephi's on Tremont with celebrity chef Corey Comeau, which went for $4,250; and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help keep score behind Fenway Park's iconic Green Monster, with a winning bid of $3,000. The Legends of the Ball event also boasted top-tier sponsors, including "MVP" supporters NESN, WEEI , CSX Corporation and The Boston Globe , and "All Star" sponsors Donoghue, Barrett and Singa, FiveStar Senior Living, Sullivan & Worcester and Thomson Reuters . About Good SportsGood Sports helps lay the foundation for healthy, active lifestyles by providing athletic equipment, footwear and apparel to disadvantaged young people nationwide. By partnering with sporting goods manufacturers, Good Sports gets crucial equipment to kids who need it most, getting them in the game. Since 2003, Good Sports has provided more than $8 million worth of equipment to 1,000 youth programs, impacting more than 500,000 kids.