The Sacramento Bee. July 11, 2000
GARBERVILLE, Calif. (AP) -- In this part of rural, mountainous Humboldt County, people don't tend to venture far from home. That's why the local little league team's upcoming trip to Cuba has locals thrilled.
"Everyone's just really excited," said Rob Then, president of Humboldt County Little League. "People have just seized upon the idea of our team going and have been helping to raise money for months."
Starting July 21, the Lost Coast Pirates, whose record this season is 12-2, will spend a week in Cuba to play three games as part of a trip by the international aid organization Pastors for Peace.
For the last three months, the 11 members of the team have been holding bake sales, car washes and raffles to raise the $25,000 needed for the trip. Parents pooled their money and the local VFW and American Legion posts contributed as well.
The team gathered used baseball equipment to send to Cuba for another Pastors for Peace project last year, and the trip grew out of that effort.
"I think in the back of our minds we had a pipe dream that we could actually go there, and then after writing letters back and forth with Pastors for Peace it finally came true," Then said, adding that the area is so rural that some boys on the team go to two-room schoolhouses. "It's
just a wonderful way to interact with the Cuban people in a positive way after all this Elian stuff."
Garberville is about 200 miles north of San Francisco.
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