When athletes like Cleveland Indians outfielder Yasiel Puig decide to use their resources to better society, the true power of sports is exposed.
On Monday, August 19th, Cleveland Indians outfielder Yasiel Puig rented a helicopter during his off-day in New York and flew to Camp Simcha in New York’s Catskills Mountains. Camp Simcha is an overnight summer camp for children and teens with cancer and other terminal illnesses that serves kosher food.
Puig said that his visit to the camp was “one of the best days” of his life. He truly utilized his free day between series against the New York Yankees and the New York Mets.
The 28-year-old former All-Star spent four hours at the camp participating in camp activities and sat in the infirmary with a boy who was too ill to participate. The kids were ecstatic when they saw Puig and his red hair walk through the door.
“[A boy] started talking about baseball, saying, ‘I love the way you play. Keep going, fight,’” Puig told MLB.com. “And I said, ‘Oh, I’m the one coming here to tell you to keep fighting and everything will be fine, and you’re the one telling me to keep going, fight and work hard’ — and that made my day.”
Monday evening, Puig tweeted: “Today was one of the best days of my life. I want to thank so many people, starting with all of my new friends at @campsimcha. Thank you for welcoming me and giving me your smiles today. You are my inspiration and when I do good things on the field I will do it for you.”
Puig, who spent 2013 to 2018 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, is new to the Cleveland Indians and is making huge impressions by his camp visit and becoming an official U.S. citizen.
Acts of kindness like this show how athletes can make a major difference in society and instill hope to those in need.