Denison High School sophomore student and major league baseball hopeful Hunter Watson remembers his last day of middle school in eighth grade.
“My math teacher Ms. Ramer handed me a letter that said, ‘When you make it big one day, don’t forget about me and send me some tickets,’” Watson said.
Watson did just that Saturday by using baseball to help teach children how to fight cancer at “Batt(L)ing for Ramer,” the sixth of 10 fundraisers to help support Rachel Ramer, an eighth grade math teacher at Scott Middle School in Denison who is battling with Acute Myeloid Leukemia.
“When I found out she had cancer, I thought I could do something to help the community I have grown up in, and also give back to Ms. Ramer at the same time,” Watson said about the batting training camp he helped organize.
About 70 participants took part in the three-hour clinic. Each participant paid a training camp fee and all proceeds are to be given to the middle school’s fundraising organization, “Rally Round Rachel.” Including this fundraiser, the school has raised almost $20,000 for Ramer.
“The purpose of this event is awareness,” Major League Baseball agent and training camp helper Craig Rose said. “We never know what life throws at us. We need to know how to handle the different things life throws us on a daily basis. Baseball is just like that. Life is like that.”
Grayson College coaches, Denison High School players and coaches, and mothers to help coordinate the children ages 4-14, helped Watson and Rose with the clinic.
“Hunter approached me and said that he would like to work on a camp for youth in Denison,” Rose said. “I told him that I would help him work with some professional guys that play baseball to help make the training camp happen.”
Garrett Fulenchek, of Howe, who was a second round draft pick by the Braves, Jaylen Ferguson, who was drafted by the Orioles, Tanner DeVinny, who played baseball for Grayson College but now plays for the University of Alabama, and others gave the young baseball players lessons and tips to help their batting technique in the six-station program.
“It’s for a really good cause,” Craig said. “From what I understand, she has leukemia and they are raising fund for that. This is about the awareness for the disease and being able to raise money for one of the community’s own members.”
Scott Middle School Assistant Principal Vicki Woody, who has helped in each of the fundraising events for Ramer, agreed with Craig.
“We were just trying to raise $10,000 by Christmas, but community support has been one-of-a-kind,” Woody said. “Ramer has so much energy. She has a great sense of humor and is an incredibly successful teacher. Our community is standing behind someone that has done so much to stand behind the community in the past.”
Woody also said Ramer was not able to attend the baseball clinic and will not be able to return to the school this year, however, she was able to attend the 5K run fundraiser that the school hosted early Saturday morning. She said Ramer is thankful that everything everyone is doing.
Watson hopes that the clinic really had an impact on the young players.
“We are out here to have fun,” he said. “That is what this game is all about. We have some good coaches out here so we are here to learn some new stuff and give back in a small way.”
Watson has already committed to play for Texas A&M University when he graduates from Denison.
