Moving along with our volunteer appreciation spotlights, we now turn our attention to our BeepBall Volunteer of the Year award winner Kasondra McDaniel.
For Kasondra, her work with the MindsEye BeepBall team, the Gateway Archers, is something close to her heart. Both her sister and her niece are valued members of the team.
Laura Foughty had the chance to ask Kasondra about her BeepBall work.
LAURA: Tell us how you got started volunteering with MindsEye.
KASONDRA: My sister was playing BeepBall and she got me involved with another team. Then MindsEye came along and it’s been a wonderful experience. I’m just there to help the players however I can and I also do the spotting.
LAURA: Tell us how spotting works.
KASONDRA: When you’re out in the field, you place the players in their location. We basically mark off the field and label it with numbers. I place the player where they need to be and when we start playing and the ball is hit, I just call one number. Like, on one side of the field, it’s one to six, so if it gets his to the three, I call, “Three!” and I can only call it one time.
LAURA: So, one number, one time. That’s all you get.
KASONDRA: I can’t talk at all. Just the one number.
LAURA: How long have you known about BeepBall? Did you ever think, “Oh, that’s something I want to get involved in?”
KASONDRA: Originally, I grew up around the Lake of the Ozarks, so to come up to St. Louis was about a three-hour drive. Kim invited me multiple times to come and watch BeepBall and I wasn’t able to come up, but when we moved up here about five years ago she invited me to a game and I’ve been helping ever since.
LAURA: How does it feel to be able to participate with your sister and your niece, Mari?
KASONDRA: We get to spend lots of time together traveling and just helping them be as competitive as they can be. It’s just amazing to watch the game in general and if you haven’t watched a BeepBall game, it’s a must. It’s pretty incredible.
LAURA: We ask everybody this. What’s your favorite pizza topping?
KASONDRA: Spinach.
LAURA: She likes it green! Do you like that with more of a creamy sauce?
KASONDRA: Yes, some spinach Alfredo chicken.
LAURA: Sounds good! Thank you so much.
MindsEye and the Gateway Archers wholeheartedly congratulate Kasondra on her win and thank her for her hard work. Drop your own congratulations in the comments below!