A year after six people were shot after an argument at Rosa L. Burney Park near downtown Atlanta – leaving two adults dead and a six-year-old at Children’s Hospital in critical care – the Atlanta Braves, the Atlanta Braves Foundation and Truist are holding a ribbon-cutting Thursday for major improvements to the park. The event is the first Braves Park Project and includes a youth baseball game to showcase the Dunbar Recreation Center’s new equipment, field improvements, scoreboard, batting cage and new dugout benches.
Atlanta City Councilman Jason Dozier represents the area and partnered with the groups on the project. Dozier was pleased to see the persistence of the community and support from corporate partners.
“Last year, the Mechanicsville community experienced a tragic shooting during a softball tournament at the park. The softball field where the shooting occurred was an amenity that had received significant support and investment from the Atlanta Braves Foundation and other philanthropic partners in the 1990s,” said Dozier.
“Because of our historic partnerships with the Atlanta Braves over the years, I contacted the Foundation and asked if they would be willing to reinvest in the park in light of these tragedies, and they happily obliged,” Dozier added. “The Atlanta Braves and Truist’s commitment to our communities across our city has been touching and sincere. In April, we teamed up for the Braves’ City Connect celebration and received a pledge from the organization that it would refurbish the baseball field, and this week, we’ll see the result of that commitment. We thank the Atlanta Braves, Truist, Atlanta City Parks and Recreation, and the Cam Kirk Foundation for investing in our children and neighborhoods.”
Volunteers cleaning up the park were joined by Braves mascot Blooper, and the Braves had some amenities available, including the Braves Country Road Trip experience and other games.
Last year, the Braves Foundation provided $1.4 million in direct community grants to 92 charitable and community organizations across the region. Additionally, there were thousands of volunteers and volunteer hours (more than 1,000 from Braves front office staff alone) that received support from the foundation – more than 1,100 pints of blood were donated in Truist Park blood drives, 2,900 youth baseball and softball players were engaged through Braves RBI programs, and more than 11,000 students and 64 teachers were supported through the Most Valuable Teachers program.
The shooting last year caught some extra headlines because of the young victim and time of the shooting but a quick Google search shows the area is still struggling with gun violence. Despite relatively clear video of one of the suspects, last year’s shooting and murders remains unsolved. Dozier points to the importance of places like the Dunbar Recreation Center as needed more than ever to give youth a positive place to hang out and their upkeep is essential to reclaiming the community from those who would commit gun violence.
