As I’m heading toward home base, a battery died. It wasn’t mine; it was my catch partner’s car battery. When I received the call that he was going to be late, I was worried that finally on day 29, someone wasn’t going to make one of our games of catch. That wasn’t the case today though. Dan Boots, the City-County Councilor for District 3, the area around my church, battled a dead battery and downtown traffic to get to today’s game of catch. That’s commitment!
It was great to play catch with Dan in a shaded area in front of the church. I’ve known Dan since last year when I arrived back in Indianapolis to serve at Castleton. It’s been great to get to know him and learn of his desire to make the city an even better place for everyone. A fellow United Methodist, Dan joined us in prayer at the Statehouse when I helped to organize a Methodist day of prayer at the beginning of this year’s legislative session. He also joined us several times when our church organized prayer vigils after gun violence in our part of the city.
As we played catch, Dan shared with me how he originally got into politics. When his kids were in school, he became involved in various ways with the school and the local community. It was after the encouragement of his wife, who told him, “Stop complaining and do something,” that he ran for office. I told him that this quote was going in the blog. It’s a good one!
As I have gotten to know Dan, I have noticed how he is accessible to his constituents, listens, and wants to make a positive impact on the community. Those are good traits in an elected leader. Dan also shared about some important meetings coming up in the work of the City-County Council. They are all important though. I have heard it said that “all politics is local.” While many people often don’t pay attention to the decisions made at the Statehouse or in the City-County Building, those decisions do matter and they do affect the lives of local people.
I think it’s important for citizens and clergy alike to have relationships with their elected leaders. It can be a positive relationship too. One where ideas are shared, support is offered, and in dialogue and discussion, change can happen. I have really enjoyed playing catch with some elected leaders this month; Senators Crider and Qaddoura and City-County Councilors Ethan Evans and now tonight, Dan Boots. I appreciate their willingness to play catch and to serve our community and state in the ways they do. I’m sure it’s not easy, but as I have gotten to know each of them, I have learned how they all got into this work to make a difference. I suppose it’s the same reason they agreed to play catch with me. It was a simple way to make a difference for a great cause!
Baseball and playing catch bring people together! Dan grew up in central Indiana and played baseball. He cheers for the Reds and followed the Big Red Machine back in the day. He would know all the players and their baseball stats. Later he would play in softball leagues, but today it was a simple game of catch to help me raise funds for Gleaners.
I’m thankful that Dan made it to my day 29 game of catch. I’m also glad his car started after our game too! Thanks, Dan for your support!
Two more days left and September will be here! I’m hoping to reach my new goal of $20,000. Here’s where we are tonight: $19,044!!!!
Help me get there by making a donation to Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana using the link below.
https://give.gleaners.org/fundraiser/4739257
Thursday, Thursday, THURSDAY! It’s the final day of August and Rowdie from the Indianapolis Indians is coming to Castleton UMC! Everyone is invited to join me for my Final Day of Catch Party behind the main church building near the playgrounds on Thursday, August 31st from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. We’ll have popsicles for the kiddos, cornhole, and the playgrounds will be open! You can also play catch of course and get your picture with Rowdie! Join us for the celebration!
Here is the event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1226246214719825/?ref=newsfeed
Get outside. Play catch. Find something that brings joy and a smile to your face.
Thank you for supporting Gleaners and following my 30 days of catch!