SCOUT LOGISTICS SHOOT- OUT, FASTBALL, FAMILY AND FUN ALL FOR CHARITY

 

Lorne Swartz may not be a household name in fastball but when it comes to his love for the game and his love for giving to those in need he is a Hall of Famer life. He is president of one of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies and a person who has based his companies name and principles on characters Scout and Atticus Finch from Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. His company motto “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view” was a poignant line spoken by Gregory Peck in his legendary portrayal of Atticus Finch; it serves as part of the masthead in Scout Logistics letterhead.

 

Swartz is also a keen fastball supporter, having played the game since youth. He has participated in numerous Maccabi Games events in Israel, won numerous gold medals, and was chosen to be Canada’s flag bearer in that event in 2009. The Maccabi Games, occurring every 4 years, is second only to the Olympic Games in number of participating athletes.

 

Lorne has long been one of the great philanthropic business men of his community and he has combined that with his love of fastball to put together one of the truly unique fastball events of the season, or any season for that matter. He had a concept for a fastball event where old friends still active in the game, well past their prime, come together to relive their “golden years on the diamond” and do it all for charity. He put a small group of organizers together; contacted 4 masters’ teams to participate and set out to find sponsorships. His dream will come to fruition tonight when the first Scout Logistics Shoot-Out kicks off at 7:00 pm at the ball park at York Mills and Bayview in Toronto.

 

What is so special about this event? If every fastball player in the game thinks back to every tournament they have ever played in, think about what you were really playing for. Right now the elite of the game are in Saskatoon playing for their respective countries in the International Softball Federation World Championship; in two weeks the Pan American Games will be the big softball event in Toronto; in the next eight weeks countless provincial, national, club and international events will take place. For many of these events it will be about bragging rights, for others it will be about prize money to help run club teams operating costs but in none of these events will more people benefit than those that are the focus of the Scout Logistics Shoot-out. You see, the four teams competing in this event are doing it all for charity and the price purse is $25,000 !

 

Each team has chosen a charity to play for and when it is all said and done 100% of the prize will go to their respective charity. The winner will receive $10,000 for their charity, second place $7500, third $5000 and the last place team will still receive $2500 to go to their chosen association. The players will all get a chance to play with old friends, many of them from their days in the Dieppe League in Toronto. Some of these guys have not seen each other for twenty years or more! At days end Saturday, Lorne Swartz will host a private barbeque and wrap up event at his home for all players and family.

 

Imagine, $25,000 being raised for charity just to have fun with old teammates! It would be safe to say everyone is a winner in the Scout Logistics Shoot-out but for a humble guy like Lorne Swartz putting smiles on the faces of family, friends and those who really need it most is what life’s riches are really all about.

 

The schedule and park locations are available in the attachment provided.

 

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