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Major League Baseball manager Joe Maddon looked at his hometown of Hazleton a few years ago and didn’t like what he saw happening among its residents.

Rifts between newcomers, mostly Latinos, and more established residents, mostly whites of European descent, threatened to divide the community, preventing it from reaching its potential. He, and others, saw parallels to the situation in 2010 and what historically had occurred during prior immigrant influxes to this region’s coal fields: distrust of the latest arrivals (be they Irish, Poles or Italians) led to longstanding animosity, even violence. Generations passed before barriers between certain groups were broken.

Stepping up to the plate, so to speak, Maddon and his supporters decided to do something to encourage faster acceptance of cultural differences and a speedier change in attitudes. They focused on children, ultimately forming a group called the Hazleton Integration Project.

Within only a couple of years, the project’s boosters succeeded in converting a former school into the Hazleton One Community Center – a place for youngsters to gather, play and learn, free of the hangups that so many adults harbor.

Next week, Maddon, who last season hopped from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Chicago Cubs, will be back in this area for the 5th annual Hazleton Integration Project’s holiday series of activities, including a coaches baseball clinic and the popular “Thanksmas” meal.

On Dec. 18, the organization’s banquet will be held, starting at 6 p.m., at the Best Western Genetti Inn and Suites in Hazle Township. Participants are expected to include ex-Major Leaguers Manny Ramirez and Jose Cardenal, former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Ed “Too Tall” Jones and Major League Baseball’s Ambassador of Inclusion Billy Bean.

Maddon, who was named the 2015 National League Manager of the Year, knows a thing or two about the dynamics of human relationships and fostering teamwork. He also knows history. In a letter on the integration project’s website, he writes: “We are a country of different cultures that are continually evolving into a single people. That has always been the American way, and it is our greatest strength as a nation.”

Acceptance. Integration. Community. The American way. Those are terms too often lacking lately in our national debates about aiding refugees and responding to violent outbreaks conducted under the guise of religion.

Maddon and his cohorts offer a welcome break from the heated language and rancor of the day, providing a grassroots example of what can be accomplished when our better inclinations prevail.

Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon will be back in this area for the Hazleton Integration Project’s holiday series of activities, including a banquet in Wilkes-Barre.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/web1_MaddonPic.jpg.optimal.jpgChicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon will be back in this area for the Hazleton Integration Project’s holiday series of activities, including a banquet in Wilkes-Barre. AP file photo

Get involved

For information on the Hazleton Integration Project, visit its website, at www.hazletonintegrationproject.com, or call 570-861-8081.