All-Star Legacy plans in Los Angeles unveiled

Major League Baseball announced its 2022 All-Star Legacy plans on Wednesday, an initiative that includes projects that will benefit children, military veterans and underserved communities in the greater Los Angeles area.

MLB, the Dodgers and the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation (LADF) announced a $6 million commitment to benefit nonprofit organizations and make an impact on lives of individuals throughout the city. This also includes several community initiatives that were completed in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the All-Star Game, which was slated to take place at Dodger Stadium.

The 2022 All-Star Legacy effort will support students from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Los Angeles, homeless veterans through Volunteers of America Los Angeles, essential day-to-day needs of families through the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank & Baby2Baby, and youth and coaches via sports-based youth development mentorship organizations.

The various All-Star Legacy programs will be commemorated from July 15-19 leading up to the All-Star Game. Since 1997, MLB and host All-Star clubs have donated approximately $100 million through the All-Star Legacy initiative.

The Legacy programs include the following:

All-Star Scholarship, Boys & Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles

MLB, the Dodgers and the LADF will establish an All-Star Legacy scholarship fund that allows the foundation to provide a $10,000 scholarship to 10 scholars in its inaugural year and 75 additional scholarships in future years. The scholarship will support academic expenses at 2- or 4-year universities in Southern California and will be administered by the California Community Foundation. The inaugural scholarships will be awarded to graduating seniors from the Boys & Girls Club Metro LA in the College Bound and Future Pathways programs.

Weekend Essentials for Families

Through the All-Star Legacy initiative, MLB, LADF and the Dodgers will address root causes of homelessness by supporting an ongoing program to provide 4 million meals and 127,000 basic essential items for youth and families living in poverty. The program will support 3,000 students and their families who will receive these items weekly at 15 Los Angeles school locations during the 2022-23 academic year. This program ensures that children who rely on school meals, do not go hungry over the weekend.

Funds will allow for the purchase of food that is nutritionally balanced and kid-friendly that will be sent home with students on Fridays, to provide meals for the weekend. The weekend kit also includes nutrition education and handouts for the children and their families that stress the importance of maintaining a balanced diet while facing food insecurity. Each student in the program will receive a Baby2Baby basic essentials kit to take home to their families that includes resources such as hygiene items, soap, blankets, diapers and PPE supplies.

Coach Mentorship, Recruitment and Training in Low Income Communities

MLB, the Dodgers and LADF are making a multiyear investment in enhancing and expanding the quality of sports-based youth development programming in Los Angeles communities by supporting increased coaching mentorship roles as well as training and recruitment efforts. Through this effort, the goals are to: expand paid coach mentor positions from 30 to 75 by 2025; recruit 1,500 coaches by '24; train 1,500 coaches in trauma sensitive sports-based youth development practices by '24; and develop a first-of-its-kind coach playbook.

Organizations that will be involved in these efforts include Up2Us Sports, Center for Healing and Justice Through Sport, Positive Coaching Alliance and Dodgers Training Academy.

Homeless Veterans through Volunteers of America Los Angeles

All-Star Legacy will support a renovation of the “Transition House” (T-House), a 20,000-square-foot facility operating in Downtown LA (in the heart of Skid Row). As one of the few providers serving homeless veterans that have limited to zero support, the T-House provides safe emergency housing and services to more than 80 individuals at a time. Each receives three meals a day and individualized services plans to ensure a successful transition to longer-term permanent supportive housing.

Clients at the T-House can stay anywhere from a month to two years, with support services including emergency shelter beds, individual case management, benefit referrals, life skill class, group therapy and assistance with financial planning and budgeting. This project is also supported by the Justin Turner Foundation.

The 2020 All-Star Legacy program included the following:

Four Dodgers Dreamfields projects to improve the current playing conditions, grow the game of baseball and softball and provide safe places for the community to play.

Two Dodgers Dreamfields at Lincoln Park Recreation Center. In June 2021, two field renovations were completed to give 8,171 youth access to these fields. 39,497 community members have access to this field (adults and youth).

One Dodgers Dreamfield Upgrade at Gilbert Lindsay Recreation Center. One field was renovated to provide 33,081 youth to have access to this field location. 110,750 community members have access to this field (adults and youth).

One Dodgers Dreamfield at William Mead Homes. In August 2021, one field renovation was completed to allow 2,993 youth to have access to this field location. 37,268 community members have access to this field (adults and youth).

In August 2021, the William Mead Boys & Girls Club Teen Center was completed as part of the 2020 ASG Legacy Projects. The project included an outdoor space for teens to safely gather.

MLB and the Dodgers provided cosmetic improvements to an existing outdoor gathering space at The Veterans Service Center, operated by Volunteers of America Los Angeles, which is the first point of contact for homeless veterans in Downtown LA.

The All-Star Legacy initiative -- which also includes support of MLB national partners Jackie Robinson Foundation, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Stand Up To Cancer -- will complement a full scope of All-Star Week community, youth and diversity and inclusion-focused programs and events that will be announced at a later date. Additional efforts will be inclusive of supporting military families, celebrating children with special needs and environmental sustainability practices.