A little over 3 years ago, I was leaving my baseball training facility in Cobb county for the day and my good friend Josh Mills was coming in to work at his automobile restoration shop. He and other workers were pushing an old, beat up 1935 Ford in the garage.
I said, “What in the world are you going to do with that?”
He replied, “Look at this photo. This car will look like that in a year.”
I’m thinking to myself as I look at the photo of a mint condition replica, there is no way in the world- especially doing it by hand. He bought the old car for $5,000 and claimed that he would restore and sell it for $80,000. Josh had to explain to me that he is a professional and wouldn’t take on a project that he couldn’t complete. He said it takes a plan, skill, patience, the right equipment and paying careful attention to detail.
L.E.A.D. was conceived immediately after that conversation three years ago for the sole purpose of developing the raw baseball talent of inner city high school baseball players in Atlanta and providing opportunities for them to use their new baseball skills to access college.
Three years later, Josh’s 35 Ford has been restored and sold for over $90,000. L.E.A.D. is also established and to date, 83% of our Ambassadors are enrolled in college on baseball scholarships and 100% of them are enrolled in college.
On Sunday, September 5th, 2010, L.E.A.D. finalized selections for our Legacy League Fall Instructional Program and welcomed 60 families into the organization. In the interview process, parents expressed that they want us to teach their sons how to become leaders in their communities, the importance of making good decisions and academic achievement. They also mentioned that their sons love baseball more than any other sport and they want us to finally teach them the proper way to play the game.
L.E.A.D. does that and a whole lot more; we have the plan, skill, patience, the right equipment and pay careful attention to detail. Let’s have another great year L.E.A.D.!
1935 Ford – Before |
1935 Ford – After |
Young men hear about what it means to be a L.E.A.D. Ambassador at an info session. |
L.E.A.D. 2010 Ambassador Graduating Class – All 8 young men are currently attending college with baseball scholarships. |