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George Rucco promoted to commander in U.S. Navy Reserve

WILKES-BARRE &mdash; Most people who read the recent obituary of Theresa Wychoskie probably didn&rsquo;t know what a remarkable woman she was.
				Theresa died Saturday, Nov. 28, and she will be missed by everyone who knew her.
				Especially her husband, Joseph, and their son, Joey.
				When he was a kid, Joey liked baseball and he always wanted to play. But Joey is physically challenged &mdash; he has cerebral palsy &mdash; and he has been in a wheelchair most of his life.
				But he really wanted to play baseball. His mother was determined to see that he did.
				In 1990-91, Fred DeSanto was involved with Little League Baseball. Therese worked for Fred.
				One day, Theresa asked Fred about a baseball league she saw on TV. The league was in Connecticut and featured kids with mental and/or physical challenges.
				Theresa told Fred her son had cerebral palsy and that he wanted to play baseball. That was all Theresa had to say.
				Fred contacted Little League Baseball headquarters in Williamsport and got all the information on forming a local Challenger Little League. Fred then organized a board of directors &mdash; I eagerly signed on &mdash; and we started planning. Challenger Little League, which would become a reality in 1991.
				Joey Wychoskie, now about 38, lives in an assisted living facility.
				Our Challenger Little League was just the second in Pennsylvania &mdash; the first was in Williamsport.
				In 2011, a 20-year reunion was held with the kids from that first league. Joey Wychoskie was sure to attend &mdash; with his mom.
				On a video done in 1993 for Challenger, Joey is featured rounding third base in his wheelchair being pushed by a buddy. Joey is waving his hands wildly as he approaches home plate. He scores a run and the smile on his face tells you how excited Joey was about playing in the Challenger league &mdash; about playing baseball, the game he loves.
				&ldquo;Joey still has his Mets jersey he wore that day,&rdquo; Theresa would say. &ldquo;And he&rsquo;s still a Mets fan. Joey loves baseball. It meant so much to him to be on that field; to have the chance to play the game he loves. If not for Challenger, these kids would never have had the opportunity to play baseball.&rdquo;
				Now those statements by Theresa really say it all. Challenger Little League and Victory Sports (for adults) bring smiles to the faces of the participants, their families and their friends.
				All because Theresa Wychoskie was determined to see that her son would have the opportunity to play the game he loves.
				The first Challenger league in 1991 had 30 players and the highest number of participants in any one season was 70. Victory, in its 10th year, has more than 100 adults participating.
				The Challenger and Victory Sports programs have contributed to improving the quality of life for all who have participated.
				Since the beginning, participants wear real baseball uniforms and they play on real baseball fields. Nobody ever gets out and there is never a losing team &mdash; all games end in a tie. Everybody is a winner.
				In a Times Leader story from 1993, Theresa had this to say:
				&ldquo;This has been wonderful for him,&rdquo; Theresa, of Duryea, said as she watched her son Joey cross home plate. &ldquo;He loves it, he just loves it.&rdquo;
				On the field of dreams of Challenger and Victory, the dreams always come true.
				The Victory program is a natural outgrowth of the Challenger Division. When Challenger held its 20th anniversary game in April 2011, most of the initial local Challenger participants turned out for an &ldquo;old-timers&rsquo; game.&rdquo;
				Edward Orloski, one of those Challenger alums, asked officials a simple, yet profound, question: &ldquo;Why can&rsquo;t we play baseball anymore just cuz we got older?&rdquo;
				There wasn&rsquo;t a reason &mdash; not a valid one anyway. Nobody had ever thought enough about it to see the need.
				So in the fall of 2011, Victory Sports was born.
				In non-pandemic years, Victory participants play baseball in the fall and basketball in the winter. They also enjoy several dances at which they renew friendships and have fun &mdash; a lot of fun.
				The outcomes in Challenger and Victory are not measured scientifically, but parents tell league officials that the programs have made a big difference in their children &mdash; all positive. They have become more social and active, and that&rsquo;s a good thing.
				With Challenger and Victory Sports, you will always see a real baseball game played by real baseball players who are concerned about one thing &mdash; giving their very best while playing the game they love.
				Just like Theresa Wychoskie wanted it for her son and all his peers.

Beyond the Byline: A mother’s love for her son’s love of baseball