EXPRESS PHOTOGRAPHY

The Eau Claire Express baseball season comes out swinging in May, and while fans are gearing up to scarf down hot dogs and cheer for the home team on the Caron Park fan deck, players are looking for places to call home.

Each year, approximately 30 young men from across the nation leave behind their homes and families to play for the Express. They spend the summer perfecting their skills while maintaining a grueling 72-game schedule. And while we love to watch the players knock it out of the park, most of us don’t think about where they go to unwind after a particularly hard day. As it turns out, they stay in the homes of families right here in the Chippewa Valley.

Host families provide a place to stay, meals, and guidance to players. “I enjoyed the positivity my host family brought to myself and the other players in the house. It was very laid back and reduced the stress of spending the summer away from home,” says Alec Crawford, who played with the Express in 2011 and 2013. “I felt as if I could ask any question or turn to them for advice while I was living with them.”

But the host program doesn’t just benefit the players, according to host parent and host family coordinator Barb Santolin. “These players become role models for the young children and athletes in our community,” she said. “Each player must participate in community service, either through visiting day cares and disabled individuals, reading to students in a classroom, participating in baseball camps for local youth, or serving a meal at The Community Table.” Nick Addison, a 2011-13 Express veteran, agrees: “You have to take a role model approach and set a good example for the kids you are staying with. They watch and see everything you do, so you need to lead by example.” Host families also receive free season tickets, access to special events with the Express team, and the opportunity to make lifelong friendships with the players.

“We don’t get paid monetarily for being a host family, but what we gain in relationships with these young men are priceless,” explained host parent Becky Drath. “Most of the host families visit their past players long after they played with the Express, going to their weddings, just hanging out with them and visiting with them when they have their children. It often is not just a season thing, but also a lifetime relationship.”

For more information or to apply to become a host family, visit eauclaireexpress.com, click on the “Community” tab and then on “Host Family Program.”