AIST.us

Protected: Prague Softball Week – TEAM AIST Softball

chad — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:52:18 +0000

Protected: TEAM AIST SELECT – Italy Softball 2011

chad — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:14:59 +0000

Protected: TEAM AIST SELECT – Italy Basketball 2011

chad — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 21:22:12 +0000

Protected: TEAM AIST SELECT – Laxfest – Ireland And England Team

chad — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:45:38 +0000

MSOE Dominican Republic Update Aug 28

chad — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 18:58:04 +0000

Day 4:
Today started out a little different than usual, none of the guys liked getting up for breakfast at 7:30 A.M. but it was a necessity since our camp for the improverished kids of Quisqueya (the town where MLB player Alfonso Soriano is from). The drive to this small town inland from the coast was less crowded than that of the city driving, but the landscape was comparable to that of Wisconsin cornfields and open plains, with the exception that the fields were sugar cane. On the bus ride there, our guide and travel aid informed us of the history of the island and the relations between the Haitians and Dominican which was rather interesting. One thing we didn’t mind learning while we were out of school. As we approached the town and the gymnasium, the conditions of the poor area became quite apparent. The gym was basically a tin shed where the basketball court was unplayable with rotting areas on the wooden court as well as a significant layer of dirt and grim which provided for absolutely zero traction. The camp had about 40 kids there ranging from the ages of 7-18 which we split into four groups to run the camp. The language barrier again provided for difficult communication, relying on gesticulation and body movements to get our lessons and activities across to these children. Their club was greatful for all the basketballs we donated as well as the children being ecstatic for the clothing and shoes we brought to them. The shoes were so important to these children that they would fight over them in order to come out as the owner of a used pair of shoes. After a small lunch and photo session with the kids, we proceeded to play two short games of half court 5 on 5 to ten points by ones and twos which we split 1-1 with the club team. This gym was by far the hottest one to this point, possibly being triple digits with a likely 80-90% humidity. As we left the gym, all the children surrounded the bus asking for anything we could give, even our socks we just used in the game. We gave them as much as we could before we left. Once we got back to the hotel, showered and ate, we headed back into Santo Domingo to see the First Cathedral of the New World where Christopher Columbus was buried until 1992. Afterwards, we hit the market for some goods. This place was quite chaotic, every last person trying to persuade you to buy their goods and basically herding each of us into their shops. The best part was being able to barter and get the price that best fit us. The rest of the night was free for us to wonder aimlessly about the resort having fun in whatever way we could find. These next excerpts are feelings from the players about the poverty encountered in today’s camp at Quisqueya.

Austin M: “Taking part in an experience like this really makes you value and appreciate the everyday little things in our lives that we take for granted. The bare necessities that we can get anyday at the store, in a mall, on the corner, are what these people try so hard to obtain and even in some instances can’t afford because of the extreme poverty seen in this town. To see kids argue and squabble over a pair of used gym shoes that we could purchase for $20 back in the states really makes us second guess our materilistic culture and take a look at what we should really value and be appreciative of. Humility is what was learned today.”

Rob: “It was an eye-opening experience to see children fight over a pair of shoes or even game-used socks. To perform a camp and see the court in which they play basketball everyday, which we wouldnt even play on because it was not safe. Lastly, the houses they all live in are extremely run down making a dorm room seem like a palace.”

Bennett: “Seeing all the little kids faces light up when we brought all of the balls into the gym, like we were heros to them. Giving them shoes that for us would be worn out and would never be used again, they treasured them like they were a 50″ Plasma TV. It really makes you think of how good we have it and how much we should be treasuring the little things that we have that they dont and that makes life a lot easier for us!”

Mike: “I had very mixed emotions about this experience we had today. I felt very happy and appreciated when we first walked in and saw their faces light up. But as time went on while we were working with these kids, I recieved more of a bad feeling. Seeing people as they live their day to day lives makes me feel terrible about what I take for granted. But overall, I’m very happy I could take part in this experience.”

Austin K: “Today was a day that i will never forget. Seeing what these kids face on a daily basis is something that I cannot imagine. The kids were so poor, some even with no shoes. To see the smiles on their face when we walked in the gym, really gave me a feeling of how great we have it in the United States. The kids were even knocking on the bus window as we were leaving asking for anything. When I threw my socks out the window, they acted like they had just won the lottery. I even felt a connection with a few of the children, and it was just an amazing feeling. Everyone should experiece something like this, it was incredible.”

Oren: “Great experience. Appreciate what I have now. Did it for the kids!”

Cynerick: “Today was an eye opening experience, to witness children who appretiated the little that we had to give them. Things that we would throw away brought so much joy to these kids. They treated us as if we were NBA superstars. Overall this was a very humbling experience and I’ve learned to appreciate the everyday things I have in life.”

Eric: “I went into today knowing that it would be a very humbling experience however, I had no idea just how humbling it would be. Just driving into the city and seeing the residents digging through the dump to find what whatever they would be able to make use of was enough of an experience in itself. Once we saw the gym and court they play on I was thrilled that I was able to help them out, and donate what we were able to bring. The kids were very appreciative, and that made it all the more worth it.”

MSOE University Dominican Tour Update

admin — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 21:29:24 +0000

Day 1 (August 25):
The team was alive and ready to travel this morning despite the fact that we were up before the crack of dawn. We arrived at O’Hare rather early so the down time was spent eating McDonald’s breakfast and bickering about top 50 NBA players. The flight was rather smooth to Miami and a first experience for some on the team. We grabbed a quick bite at Pizza Hut burning a hole through our pockets. The slight layover in Miami went quick due to the anxiousness of the guys to get to the resort for some all you can eat buffets especially (Eric) Bohrer. After about an hour and a half flight, we safely arrived to the Dominican Republic, but the traveling wasn’t quite over. We took a short bus ride and arrived at our paradise resort with large beautiful rooms with all the amenities. The rest of the night was spent eating and recovering from the day of travel, given there was some fun injected in those last few hours before bed.

Day 2 (August 26):
Since none of us wanted to waste much time with all the activities to do at the resort, we were up at a staggeringly early time of….9 a.m. We grabbed some more all you can eat breakfast from one of the four restaurants on the resort then immediately transitioned to the ocean front. The group consensus was to snorkel and that is what we did. Not too much action there but it was still a great experience for everyone. We also took a trial dive in the pools just to see what it was look to scuba since the $100 fee was a bit much for us. Then after a relaxing afternoon on the beach we went for an hour drive to see The Three Eyes which was amazing, a natural cave with small pools and a lot of life. We headed to the gym afterwards to play our first game against Los Padros. The game went right down to the wire but we ended up winning by just a couple of points. The bus ride back to the resort, for lack of a better word, was chaos. Pretty much no street signs, signals, lanes or any of the organization we love in the U.S. The horn is used about 75% of the time while on the streets and a red light doesn’t mean much here. They are having a Michael Jackson show tonight at the resort and everyone is going to be at that which should be a lot of fun. The night is young and we have plenty of energy for a fun night.

Protected: TEAM AIST SELECT – Lacrosse Prague Cup

admin — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 02:54:31 +0000

Dickinson College Women’s Basketball Costa Rica Trip 2010

admin — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 02:32:18 +0000

The members of the 2009 and 2010 Dickinson College Women’s Basketball Team toured the beautiful country of Costa Rica. The team left from Reagan International Airport the morning of July 31st and returned at midnight on August 9th. The team traveled with American International Sports Teams (AIST). Our tour guide was Roberto Aguillar and our bus driver was Edward Calderon. Our local AIST manager in charge of our competitions was Fernando Nietzen. The team would like to sincerely thank AIST, Roberto, Edward, Fernando and his wife Evette and all the people of Costa Rica for a once in a lifetime experience and a spectacular tour.

This website is dedicated to describing the journey of the thirteen members of DCWB. The team explored rain forests, cloud forests, volcanoes, beaches, cities and villages. The team was able to play a game against the Junior National Team in Puntarenas. On the day of this game, the team provided a Coaches Clinic for the local youth boys and girls basketball coaches of the region. DCWB also played the Costa Rican National Team two times in San Jose and was able to compete against a team preparing for the World Games as a precursor for their attempt to make the 2012 Olympics in London.

To view the entire website dedicated to this tour visit www.dcwbcostarica2010.com.

If you would like to learn more about Dickinson College Women’s Basketball please visit us at http://www.dickinson.edu/athletics/teams/women/basketball/

Grace College’s Christopher Valentine earned Best Pitcher Award

admin — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 16:45:01 +0000

Grace College honored their sophomore pitcher Christopher Valentine’s performance at the Prague Baseball Week with a great article on their website. They posted some quotes by the Team AIST Baseball Coach Frank Sims and talked about the history that Team AIST made at the tournament this year.

“Team AIST consisted of 16 players from 11 different schools around the nation. Before this year’s championship, they had taken home three second-place finishes and one third-place finish. Harvard University’s Matthew Vance (short stop) also became the first American to win the MVP of the Tournament.

Valentine’s and Vance’s awards were presented by Haim Katz, the President of the International Association of Baseball (IAB).”

To read the entire article here is a printout of the page from http://www.grace.edu/athletics/mensbaseball/stories_10/Valentine.php. Read article print out!

Best Experience of My Life!

admin — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 20:10:46 +0000

What an experience I had to travel and play for Team AIST. When I first heard about this trip from Brent Pouricau, a former player and recruiter for AIST I was a bit worried how I would end up getting the funds to be able to go to Prague. Although I made it work and got the funds and glad I did. Just to be able to go to Prague and explore the city was amazing and yet to be able to play baseball and win the championship was beyond my thoughts. Being able to travel with the baseball team and softball team was awesome and getting the chance to meet new people that I would have never met if I would have never gone on the trip. As we spent time together we all had a good time and will forever remember this trip. I would like to thank AIST for allowing me to join the team and had an experience that I will talk about for the rest of my life. I WILL BE BACK FOR ANOTHER TRIP!!
Thank you Team AIST!

Daniel Pitfield