The Kershaws and fans connect virtually, and together do good
by Cary Osborne
Central California resident and lifelong Dodger fan Barbara Ferraro had something weighing on her conscience after her Zoom call with Clayton Kershaw ended earlier this month.
This experience — one that was a reward for her donation to Kershaw’s Challenge and COVID-19 relief — could have been someone else’s. Someone more deserving, she thought.
Then she thought of her brother, Greg Kendall.
The last game she went to at Dodger Stadium was June 30, 2018. It was the last day she spent with Greg.
“It was the best day. We did it all,” she recalled. “We hadn’t been there in a couple of years, and we did the hot dog, we did the peanuts. We even have the little LA Dodger ice cream in the little plastic cap. I have pictures in my house of that day. So it’s just, it’s another good memory.”
On January 12, 2019, Greg was killed by a drunk driver.
Barbara and Greg had so many wonderful memories together at Dodger Stadium and as Dodger fans.
So after winning a raffle for a Zoom call with Kershaw and spending about 15 minutes with him virtually — the Dodger talking about fishing and his first feeling walking into Dodger Stadium, and Ferraro introducing him to her daughter and grandson — she thought again.
About Greg, and how somehow winning the raffle was his way of showing he was with her.
“I’m not bawling about it right now talking about it,” she said, thinking about the notion. “But I am choked up.”
She didn’t tell the story about her brother to Kershaw. Instead, she wanted to keep things uplifting and explained to the Dodger ace what the team meant to her.
Kershaw made seven calls in May to raffle winners and other donors who participated in a contest to win some virtual time with the three-time Cy Young Award winner and 2014 National League Most Valuable Player. The Kershaw’s Challenge raffle raised $85,533 to support COVID-19 relief efforts by the Los Angeles-based Dream Center and Dallas-based Behind Every Door.
Kershaw said he found a common theme with the people he spoke with.
“The fandom that people have for the Dodgers goes back generations and families. That was what’s cool to see,” Kershaw said. “Everybody was talking about how their parents took them to their first game when they were little bitty, and how they grew up Dodger fans, just talking about what it means to them. It’s almost like a family tradition, but for a lot of people in Los Angeles. I knew that, but I think that was cool to see up close to hear personal stories of just how much the Dodgers team meant to them — not because it’s a baseball team, but because it was part of their family’s tradition.”
Gary Coleman, a Dallas-based donor to the effort, had met Kershaw before at Kershaw’s Challenge events. In the past, he said he had talked to Kershaw about his relationship with Sandy Koufax. Coleman used to drive with his brother to Houston to catch games in which Koufax pitched. But in this Zoom setting, he asked Kershaw about family and also how the pitcher was staying ready for a 2020 baseball season.
And he also talked about the purpose of this charitable effort and the inspiring dedication of Kershaw and his wife, Ellen, to serve.
“I know that he and Ellen were high school sweethearts. My wife, Barbie, and I were high school sweethearts. We talked about that,” Coleman said. “And it’s really neat to see that both Clayton and Ellen are passionate about this, and this is something they’re doing together. And everything, every event, everything they talk about is always together. And they get hands-on with all the causes.
“I told him I really think that not only are they great role models for other athletes and their spouses, I just think they’re great role models for any couple, especially young couples. Not everybody can start a foundation, but everybody can find a cause. I think they’re a really good example. That really gives us comfort in supporting their organization.”
The Kershaws have made a global impact, launching their foundation after sponsoring a young girl named Hope in Zambia, Africa, through a ministry organization. Ellen met Hope — an orphan who is HIV positive — in the summer of 2010. Kershaw said he and Ellen recently spoke with Hope on Zoom, and she is thriving.
Since 2011, the Kershaws have served vulnerable and at-risk children living in Los Angeles, Dallas, Zambia and the Dominican Republic. They have had a lengthy relationship providing support to the Dream Center.
“They’re so tangibly making a difference. They take food trucks out every single week feeding thousands of families,” Ellen said. “This past year we were able to able to build a playground on the property of the Dream Center, and that was really incredible. There are so many kids who live there that call the place home, and they had no place to play. So we got to take our kids out there to the grand opening of the playground. We just love what they’re doing.”
Earlier this year, Kershaw’s Challenge announced its 2020 beneficiaries, which included the Dream Center and Behind Every Door. Once COVID-19 started to spread to alarming proportions, the foundation decided to help.
As did an army of supporters.
“We got some incredible donations from a lot of people. But we also got $5, $10, $20 donations from all over the country, from different people that wanted to help however they could. And we just thought that was really cool to see that people were wanting to help in any way that they could,” Kershaw said.
Ferraro said she had seen Kershaw talking about this cause in an interview, and being a fan of him and the Dodgers, she Googled to get more information. After the donation, she didn’t think about winning. She was just satisfied with contributing.
Then she received an email that she had won a Zoom call with Kershaw.
She was admittedly nervous. To ensure that she had a trustworthy Internet connection, she went to her daughter’s office for the call instead of staying home.
She wore a Dodger cap for the call.
“My roots were horrible. I did not want him to see me with stripes down the middle of my head. Is that not vain or what?” she laughed. “Nobody can get their hair done anymore!”
Her daughter, Kelley, who is not a sports fan, walked in during the call. Ferraro had to later explain to her who Kershaw is. Ferraro said she was so inspired that she intends to continue her charitable support.
The call was something she will treasure forever.
“Truly, it was really amazing. And I don’t like that word. I’m thinking of a better word to use because you don’t get experiences like that all the time,” Ferraro said. “I just tell people that my bucket list was done just because of that day.”
