It was announced yesterday that Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan and C.J. Stewart, co-founder of L.E.A.D., Inc. and L.E.A.D. Center for Youth, will be co-hosting the inaugural Breaking Barriers Classic today at 12:30 p.m. at South Forsyth High School.
From a press release:
The baseball game will include players from the Georgia Bombers, which Duncan’s son plays for, and the L.E.A.D. Ambassadors. The teams will play 7 innings and will draft players and switch rosters to give players from different backgrounds the opportunity to expand their perspectives. The players will also wear the jersey number “44” in honor of MLB Hall of Famer Hank Aaron who passed away earlier this year. After first meeting while playing collegiate baseball, Duncan and Stewart have long wanted to get back on the field together. They will use this opportunity to talk with the players about the importance of civic engagement and share valuable life lessons they learned while playing baseball.
“I have enjoyed getting to know C.J. over the years, and it’s been incredible to meet and work with his organization and the L.E.A.D. Ambassadors. I am thrilled we get to host a game that will bring young men together who have one major thing in common – they all love baseball,” said Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan. “With the MLB All-Star Game being played later that day, July 13 is the perfect day to celebrate the game of baseball. And I cannot wait to watch the L.E.A.D. Ambassadors take on the Georgia Bombers, with my son on the field.”
“Geoff and I had the opportunity to play baseball at some of the sport’s highest levels – even as collegiate opponents. This collaboration is arguably one of the most important games of both our lives,” said C.J. Stewart. “Bringing my L.E.A.D. Ambassador team together with the Georgia Bombers team in a setting that has a historically challenging racial context, demonstrates that baseball has the power to overcome difference. We have to do all we can to make the world better than how we found it – this game is mine and Geoff’s effort to do just that.”
What: Inaugural Breaking Barriers Classic
When: July 13 at 12:30PM
Where: South Forsyth High School
L.E.A.D., Inc. | L.E.A.D. Center for Youth is a nonprofit organization working to empower an at-risk generation to lead and transform their city of Atlanta by using the sport of baseball to teach Black boys how to overcome three curveballs that threaten their success: crime, poverty and racism. Through their year-round Pathway2Empowerment, sport-based youth development (SBYD) programming, L.E.A.D. inspires and equips Black males with the empowerment they need to live sustainable lives of significance.