Caroline Schillaci Almonte writes:
I know that no town is perfect. But I have to say Westport came pretty close to it on Saturday.
My 6th grade son Elias — a first-time Little League player — was allowed to pitch his first game today.
Elias is not only new to the game of baseball, but he also has special needs. He has been driving his very patient coaches crazy all season to let him pitch. His dream finally came true.
Now on the mound for the Angels: Elias Almonte!
He had a tough time locating his pitches. Yet the opposing players and coaches were nice enough to allow for a few strikeouts.
My son beamed, as both teams clapped and cheered for him. He hugged everyone — his teammates, and the other team.
I realized he needed this win today.
I would like to thank our Angels coaches, Gama and Adrian, the Rangers coaches, the players on both teams, and especially the parents of these players. You should b eproud of the fact that you have raised kind, empathetic children.
I am proud to be part of such a great community.
Elias Almonte (right) with teammates, earlier this year.
I love, LOVE this positive, compassionate story! And, being a sub teacher in town, I know Elias who is an incredible, exuberant, energetic kid with the best smile and laugh! Thank you for sharing! What a way to spread smiles and positivity!
♥️⚾️ Congrats on the W, Elias!!
What a wonderful story! I’m so proud to live in this town. Way to go Elias!
This post illustrates that there is more to winning than the final score. This is a real win! Way to go Westport, Little league and coaches and all the team members.
Congratulations to everybody here, and especially Elias!
Gamma is the best!!
CHEERS TO ALL
I love this story so much! In my 14 years actively running Westport Girls Softball we lived this story several times. A shout out to Coach Ann Izzi who always was ready to manage our awesome challenged players. She played her two players the same number of infield innings as was our policy for all players with appropriate nods for safety. Her teams won two Majors Championships in a row. Karma rocks.
A second shout out to Beth Cody who runs Westport Little League’s Challenger program which pairs challenged players with “buddies” so they can participate in our great sport as well. Additional shout out to Mike Mike Connors who coaches ’em up.
This moving piece, puts the lie to the repulsive title “Westport Means Business” given to the library/Westport panel mentioned above….the town means, as this piece reminds us,, so very much more than “BUSINESS.”
Caroline, this story is a tribute to so many in our town and especially to you for recognizing the positivity and sharing it with us. At this time, it is exactly what we all need. Elias, your smile never changes…I recognized your photo immediately (you’ve grown so much since first grade)! Congratulations on pitching your first game and making your entire team proud! Keep smiling and always stay the beautiful person that you are!
Thank you very much for sharing this with me!!!
It was so nice reading Elias’ wonderful story, I always wonder how is he doing and it is so nice to read great things about him and of course his lovely family.