Boys & Girls Clubs of America Honors Major League Baseball and Verizon Communications Senior Vice President at Annual President's Dinner

NEW YORK, June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) will salute Major League Baseball (MLB) and John Bell, senior vice president - domestic telecom human resources, Verizon Communications, for their ongoing commitment to children and youth at its annual President's Dinner. The dinner, with expected guests to include Major League Baseball Hall of Famers and longtime New York Yankees teammates Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford, is being held today at the Waldorf-Astoria.

BGCA Chairman Anne Szostak will present the Champion of Youth Award to Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig on behalf of Major League Baseball, and Bell will receive the President's Award from BGCA President Roxanne Spillett. Tim Russert, moderator of NBC's "Meet the Press," will serve as dinner emcee.

The President's Dinner is a premier BGCA fundraising event, and honors those who have had a significant impact on the lives of children and youth. Proceeds from the dinner provide critical funding for the organization and the more than 4.4 million youth it serves across the United States.

"For nearly 100 years, BGCA has served our nation's children and teens, but we cannot do it alone," said Spillett. "It takes the leadership of organizations like Major League Baseball and people like John Bell to help us fulfill our mission -- to prepare today's young people for tomorrow."

The Champion of Youth Award will be bestowed upon Major League Baseball for its tremendous generosity and philanthropy on behalf of the nation's youth. In 1997, BGCA was named the official charity of Major League Baseball; since that time, the two organizations have been making baseball dreams come true for young people across the country.

Through the relationship, BGCA and Major League Baseball have established more than 150 Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities Leagues and nearly 200 Rookie Leagues, providing as many as 120,000 children with the opportunity to play baseball and softball annually. Major League Baseball also has given more than $3 million in support of Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide.

BGCA has enjoyed national exposure through Major League Baseball-produced print, radio and television public service campaigns and Major League Baseball has generated more than $20 million in direct and indirect funding for BGCA during its eight-year relationship. In addition, members of local Boys & Girls Clubs have participated in ceremonial first pitches at Major League Baseball jewel event games. At the 2004 All-Star Game, two Houston-area Boys & Girls Club members threw out ceremonial first pitches with boxing great Muhammad Ali and prior to every game of the 2004 World Series, a youth from a local Boston or St. Louis Boys & Girls Club delivered the official first pitch ball to the mound for the First Pitch Ceremony.

"On behalf of Major League Baseball, I am deeply honored to accept the Champion of Youth Award from Boys & Girls Clubs of America," said Commissioner Selig. "Major League Baseball is a social institution with important social responsibilities and I am proud of our efforts to promote youth game development. As the 'Official Charity of Major League Baseball' since 1997, Boys & Girls Clubs of America has been vital to the success of many MLB youth outreach programs."

In addition, many Major League Clubs, their staff and players, work with local Boys & Girls Clubs, whether through one-on-one mentoring of Club members, serving on local boards of directors, or giving of their personal time or funds.

For more than a decade, Bell, who is an alumnus of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston's Roxbury Unit, has been providing the leadership and dedication that has helped BGCA reach unprecedented levels of growth.

As a BGCA national trustee, he has been a strong advocate for outfitting Clubs on Native American lands with the technology needed to bridge the digital divide. In 2003, he helped 15 Native American Clubs secure funding to attend the National Technology Conference in Phoenix, Ariz., where they gathered to discuss ways to implement and facilitate effective technology programs in their Clubs. Bell also serves on the board of the Boys & Girls Club of Stamford, Conn.

"Our children are a gift, an inheritance of great importance," said Bell. "It is an honor to work with Boys & Girls Clubs to provide a safe and enriching environment for thousands of children."

BGCA Southwest Regional Youth of the Year Ramon Moran also will share his personal story about how the Club has shaped his life and given him the inspiration to succeed. Moran is a member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson's Holmes Tuttle Unit.

About Boys & Girls Clubs of America

Boys & Girls Clubs of America ( http://www.bgca.org/ ) comprises a national network of some 3,700 neighborhood-based facilities annually serving more than 4.4 million young people, primarily from disadvantaged circumstances. Known as "The Positive Place for Kids," the Clubs provide guidance-oriented character development programs on a daily basis for children, 6-18 years old, conducted by a full-time professional staff. Key Boys & Girls Club programs emphasize character and leadership development, education and career development, health and life skills, the arts, sports, fitness and recreation.