Welcome to week three hundred and forty-nine of the Sports Doing Good newsletter. This week’s 10 stories include:

1. Arsenal Laid Off Its ‘Gunnersaurus’ Mascot. A Player Offered to Pay His Salary. (NY Times)
2. WNBA Finals: Ageless Seattle star Sue Bird is the consummate champion (ESPN)
3. Adam Silver addresses NBA’s efforts toward diversity among coaches and social justice (The Undefeated)
4. Man United’s new signing Edinson Cavani: The striker with a passion for ballet (ESPN)
5. A more robust, sustainable and inclusive sports industry (Sustainability Report)
6. Grandpa Leaves a Free Bucket of Baseballs With Touching Note About Cherishing Your Family (Good News Network)
7. Performance tech company Hyperice attracts slew of star athlete-investors, valued at $700 million (CNBC)
8. Bengals’ QB Joe Burrow partners with Lordstown Motors on anti-hunger campaign (Cincinnati Enquirer)
9. US sports venues to play critical role in upcoming election (SportBusiness)
10. ‘They Just Get It’: How Women in M.L.B. Found Support in a Group Text (New York Times)

10+2020 survey results: Your views on sportanddev (Sport and Dev)https://www.sportanddev.org/en/article/news/2020-survey-results-your-views-sportanddevMy voice, our equal future (Sport and Dev)https://www.sportanddev.org/en/article/news/my-voice-our-equal-futureFighting LGBTQ+ discrimination through sport (Sport and Dev)https://www.sportanddev.org/en/article/news/fighting-lgbtq-discrimination-through-sportSport is a remarkable tool for creating social bonds (Peace and Sport)https://www.peace-sport.org/opinion/sport-is-a-remarkable-tool-for-creating-social-bonds/Beyond Sport House From Home 2020 (Beyond Sport)http://www.beyondsport.org/event/2020-beyond-sport-house-from-home/

We present again our “Featured Video” offering(s). With the explosion of video content out there highlighting the good in sport, we want to showcase such content for your enjoyment and learning. This will be an ongoing effort.
Breaking down the top five topics at the espnW Summit (ESPN)http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=30156915Giving Back, One Basketball Court at a Time (Great Big Story)https://www.greatbigstory.com/stories/guest-editor-painted-courts

Introduction 

A final reminder about Sports Philanthropy World 2020, October 26-27https://sportsphilanthropynetwork.org/2020-sports-philanthropy-world/ I will be speaking on two panels: Monday at 5pm EST (Storytelling) and Tuesday at 1pm EST (Public Relations). For Sports Doing Good readers, you are entitled to a $100 discount for a total registration fee of $99 using code: SPEAKER100
I have featured a few thousand stories over the past eight years at Sports Doing Good, running the gamut from those that motivate, inspire, and energize us, to those that make us reflect, contemplate, and yes, occasionally laugh. One type of story that maybe has been overshadowed by these are the ones that are just “nice,” that get you to smile and think, “I am glad I read that sweet story.” It was pointed out to me that I was not including those types of stories as much. I didn’t argue because I felt the person might be right. I would try harder to find those stories. Lo and behold, I found one this week.
Randy Long found a bucket of baseballs cleaning out his garage recently. The balls were the ones he used to throw around and use for batting practice with his son, now aged 46 and grandson, now 23. It sounded like it had been a long time since he was able to do that and he was saddened by that. He took the balls to a local batting cage and left them there with a nice note saying he hoped someone could use them and encouraged parents to cherish the time they have with their kids and to give them a hug every chance they got. Well, as you might have guessed since it is in the newsletter, the story went viral and countless folks surely did smile, and maybe shed a tear or two (there is crying in baseball!!) when hearing about or reading the story. I am so happy to be able to feature it, for in just a few words Randy Long captured so much of what is truly important in life, and that is family and the time we spend together. Never take either of them for granted.
Please continue to send along your stories. You’re both our audience and best source of stories. Our Twitter handle is @sportsdoinggood, and you can find us at www.facebook.com/sportsdoinggood and on Instagram.

Top Stories of the Week

Arsenal Laid Off Its ‘Gunnersaurus’ Mascot. A Player Offered to Pay His Salary. (NY Times) For full story, please click here.

WNBA Finals: Ageless Seattle star Sue Bird is the consummate champion (ESPN) For full story, please click here.

Adam Silver addresses NBA’s efforts toward diversity among coaches and social justice (The Undefeated) For full story, please click here.

Man United’s new signing Edinson Cavani: The striker with a passion for ballet (ESPN)For full story, please click here.

A more robust, sustainable and inclusive sports industry (Sustainability Report) For full story, please click here.

Grandpa Leaves a Free Bucket of Baseballs With Touching Note About Cherishing Your Family (Good News Network)  For full story, please click here.

Performance tech company Hyperice attracts slew of star athlete-investors, valued at $700 million (CNBC) For full story, please click here.

Bengals’ QB Joe Burrow partners with Lordstown Motors on anti-hunger campaign (Cincinnati Enquirer) For full story, please click here.

US sports venues to play critical role in upcoming election (SportBusiness)For full story, please click here.

‘They Just Get It’: How Women in M.L.B. Found Support in a Group Text (New York Times)  For full story, please click here.

Our mission is to have Sport Doing Good be a consistent, and significant, contributor to the areas of sports, social responsibility and development. We look forward to partnering with other stakeholders in producing content, in creating and/or sponsoring athletic and service events, knowledge sharing, and conferences/seminars, and even having a commercial arm that could be the source of innovative social businesses. We invite you to send in news, press releases, and guest pieces for possible publication, and email us with suggestions about the content and format of the newsletter and Sports Doing Good website.

Contact Information Sarbjit “Sab” Singh sab@sportsdoinggood.com 516-287-7141 Associate Professor/ChairpersonSport Management DepartmentFarmingdale State College