Charlie Manuel, Larry Bowa and a team of Philadelphia Phillies executives are planning to spend a night out in the cold to raise both awareness and funds for homeless youth. The event is scheduled to take place from Nov. 21 to Nov. 22 from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. at The Friends Center in Center City Philadelphia.
Manuel made the announcement via his twitter page on Tuesday:
The event is apart of the Covenant House’s Sleep Out Movement, which is a challenge to sleep outside for one night with a sleeping bag to raise awareness for youth homelessness. Money raised from the event will support Covenant House Pennsylvania, which according to Sleepout.org “…provides homeless young people with safe shelter and wrap-around services, including education and job training, so they can move forward to an adulthood free of poverty and the threat of homelessness.”
Youth homelessness and poverty are issues that hit home for the former Phillies Wall of Famer. While Manuel was never homeless as a child, his family did struggle while growing up as the third of eleven children in Western Virginia. He made his own bat out of a stick and lined a baseball diamond with lime gathered from a lead and zinc mine. Despite the many challenges the skipper has faced in his life, Manuel has carved out a successful career in baseball, which culminated in a World Series championship as manager of the Phillies in 2008.
So far the event has raised $184,641 and has 176 participants and 19 registered teams, including the Phillies. The team has so far raised $1,655 and has a stated goal of raising $20,000. According to the team’s registration page, the Phillies executives that will accompany both Manuel and Bowa include executive vice president Dave Buck, vice president of communications Bonnie Clark, senior vice president of ticket operations & projects John Weber and vice president of administration Kathy Killian.
To join Manuel and Bowa as part of the Phillies team on Nov. 21 or to make a donation, click here. To learn more about Covenant House Pennsylvania, click here.
