Georgia Hosts Little League Urban Initiative Baseball Jamboree

By Communications Division
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa.
May 22, 2012

Since the Little League Urban Initiative Jamboree concept transitioned from one national tournament to numerous state/regional tournaments in 2010, the initiative for boys and girls in urban neighborhoods has prospered. This year is no different with the addition of one jamboree and new venues.

The next jamboree this year will be the Georgia Jamboree in Marietta, Ga., held May 25-27. This jamboree is for Majors Division (9-12-year-olds) Baseball.

The Little League Urban Initiative was established in 1999 to provide opportunities for communities in metropolitan areas to reap the benefits of having Little League in their neighborhoods.

“These events are beneficial to the leagues involved, because the jamborees better serve the Urban Initiative leagues on a state-wide basis. Each year the games give local league members, coaches and players a great opportunity to interact with leagues similar to theirs,” Demiko Ervin, Director of the Little League Urban Initiative, said.

The 2012 Little League Urban Initiative Georgia Jamboree is hosted by Milford Little League and will feature teams from 11 leagues and more than 150 players (the participating leagues are listed at the end of the release). Games will be played on the two fields at Milford Little League located in Marietta.

Jamboree games on Friday (May 18) will begin at 6 p.m. with all 12 teams playing once on the first day. The following day the schedule begins at 9 a.m. with each team again playing one game. On Sunday, each team plays its final pool-play game beginning with a pair of games at 8 a.m.  The semifinal games will be played at 2 p.m. on Sunday, with the championship game scheduled to start at 4 p.m.

The players, managers and coaches of the teams participating in the jamboree will be given free tickets to the Atlanta Braves game Saturday at Turner Field against the Washington Nationals.  The tickets are being provided by the Braves.

The eight jamborees this summer take the place of the annual Little League Urban Initiative Jamboree hosted by Little League International each Memorial Day weekend. During the six years (2004-09) the Jamboree was played at the Little League International complex in South Williamsport, Pa., teams from 66 different Urban Initiative leagues and more than 800 players participated.

In the last two years, 134 teams and more than 1,700 players have had the opportunity to participate in an Urban Initiative Jamboree.

The Little League Urban Initiative is now operating with more than 220 leagues in nearly 90 cities in the United States. The Urban Initiative also has participated in more than 30 field renovation/development projects, including its most recent project in Richmond, Va. The Urban Initiative has stimulated the participation of 4,000 teams and approximately 52,000 players since its inception.

For more information on Little League’s Urban Initiative, contact Mr. Ervin at: dervin@LittleLeague.org; or (570) 326-1921. More information on the Little League Urban Initiative is also available on the Little League web site, at: www.LittleLeague.org; or on Facebook, at: www.facebook.com/LittleLeagueUrbanInitiative.

Leagues Participating in the Little League Urban Initiative Georgia Jamboree

• Belvedere Little League (Decatur, Ga.)
• Ben Hill Little League (Atlanta, Ga.)
• Chattahoochee County Little League (Cusseta, Ga.)
• College Park Little League (College Park, Ga.)
• Grantville Little League (Grantville, Ga.)
• Lowcountry Little League (Johns Island, S.C.)
• Macon Little League (Macon, Ga.)
• Memphis Little League (Memphis, Tenn.)
• Milford Little League (Marietta, Ga.)
• SALLY Little League (Columbus, Ga.)
• South Fulton Little League (Fairburn, Ga.) (2 teams)

2012 Little League Urban Initiative Jamboree Schedule

• April 27-29 – Southern California Jamboree (Los Angeles, Calif.) – Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Baseball
• May 4-6 – Florida State Jamboree (Clearwater, Fla.) – Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Baseball
• May 4-6 – Florida State Softball Jamboree (Clearwater, Fla.) – Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Softball
• May 18-20 – Texas State Jamboree (Houston, Texas) - Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Baseball
• May 18-20 – Northern California Jamboree (Stockton, Calif.) - Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Softball
• May 25-27 – Georgia Jamboree (Marietta, Ga.) - Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Baseball
• June 1-3 – Northwest Jamboree (Portland, Ore.) - Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Softball
• June 22-24 – Illinois Jamboree (Chicago, Ill.) - Major Division (9-12-year-olds) Baseball