Send Off: All-Stars Will Sign Autographs at Lido's Thursday Night

The Lemon Grove All-Stars team will get a send off to the Senior League Baseball World Series starting at 6 p.m. Thursday at Lido’s Italian Restaurant.

The team will be on hand for a “meet and greet,” according to Art Martinez, president of the Lemon Grove Little League. Fans will be able to purchase baseballs autographed by the U.S. West champions for $15. Proceeds will be used to help parents of the players travel to Bangor, ME, to watch their sons compete.

The league has been caught in a whirlwind of fundraising the past couple of weeks as the All-Stars advanced through the regional tournament toward the World Series.  While the Little League organization covers the cost for players and coaches to travel to Bangor, the boys’ parents and family members are scrambling to find the funds.

“The team is very, very excited,” Martinez said. “It’s the experience of a lifetime.”

The local business community has pitched in to help. Coop’s West Texas Barbeque hosted a fundraiser that donated 25 percent of the day’s proceeds, Big Boyz Car Audio hosted a $5 car wash, and another effort was organized at the Comedy Palace. Martinez said Lido’s has made a $250 donation.

Supporters who want to make a donation online can do so through a link to Fund Razr.com on the Lemon Grove Little League website, or in the Lemon Grove Little League’s account at Wells Fargo.

Martinez said the team will leave at 4 a.m. Friday to drive to Los Angeles, where they will fly East to Bangor. Opening ceremonies take place Saturday, and the team will face off against the South Beaches/Greater West Melbourne Little League of Brevard County, FL, at 5 p.m. Sunday.