Image by Nicole Fernandez
Written by Camila Fernandez/BBC Managing Director
Class of 2011 Alumna Nicole Fernandez may have gone to Colombia for a news report, but after meeting a group of underprivileged kids in the coastal city of Barranquilla, her life’s path changed forever.
A sports journalist, Fernandez traveled to the country to meet with a baseball Yankees scout who trains 3 to 18 year old kids who don’t have enough means of their own to play. There, she met five year old Juan who inspired her to start Game Time Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides sports equipment for young athletes.
“I went as a reporter to do a story, but I came out different because the little kid touched my heart — so that’s when I knew,” Fernandez said.
She said he expressed to her how much he loved his coach because of his commitment to the team. Later did she find out that little Juan and his family were provided shelter in the stadium.
When Fernandez returned home to Miami, she said she couldn’t forget her experience and decided to put her career on hold to help support the kids.
“So seeing them — they barely have anything, and us that have everything, and if all I can do is be the messenger, then by all means, why not fight for that?” said the journalism communications major. Many of them play baseball on soccer fields.
Fernandez has been featured on NBC 6 and ESPN Deportes in Miami, as well as Caracol Radio and television network Telecaribe in Colombia. Game Time Foundation also has its own website called gametimefoundation.org to collect funds for new equipment to then send to the kids.
Fernandez also started a campaign called #Athletes4Athletes where MLB Minor Leagues and Major Leagues show their support to the foundation in a video and or photo through its Instagram page @gametimefound.
She said it’s a way for athletes to not only promote themselves, but also to support future generation athletes.
At the Sluggers Batting Cages in Tamiami Park and Hitters Hangout in Kendall, she leaves boxes where donors can leave bats, baseballs, softballs and baseball uniforms. She has also found support through the Miami Marlins Baseball Team.
Fernandez said collecting equipment has been the easier part, the challenge is having enough funds to bring them to Colombia.
“It’s hard, it’s a lot of work, but I put my career on hold. If I get a job in T.V., it’s going to be 100 percent T.V. So if I’m starting this, I can’t leave it half-way,” Fernandez said. “I found the purpose of my life, so that’s why I’m pushing and pushing forward.”
Being involved at the University as a Phi Sigma Sigma sorority sister, volunteering with FIU Alternative Breaks to help less fortunate in Washington D.C. and participating in FIU Dance Marathon really showed her passion to help others.
“I think that also influenced me in giving back… It was always in me to help,” she said.
Even though soccer is the most commonly played sport in Colombia, Fernandez sides first with baseball and softball because she thinks these sports have a lot of potential to grow in the community.
According to the National Consulting Center of Colombia, 77 percent of 2,475 Colombians who were surveyed last year said that sports like soccer bring them closer together. This is why Fernandez loves sports, because it is brings people together in celebration.
“I think it unites people and it’s a way of people forgetting like the bad things that are happening,” Fernandez said.
Later on, Fernandez hopes to teach the kids English and talk to them about the importance of taking care of their body to be healthier and better athletes along the way.
“[The Foundation] presented itself in the most random way, but through my career, which is my passion, I learned my meaning of life,” she said. “I feel like as a reporter, we’re a voice of many people.”
camila.fernandez@fiusm.com
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