CommuniTyler!

by Karen Savell, Battlestar Ballsacktica

Where have my WAKA Wednesdays gone?? Even though I'm not kickballing, I still feel the need for a recap! So step into my office...yes, the one with an art desk and a bookshelf and a bowflex, and a sleeping cat and let me take you back...(insert fade to flashback here)...

It was only a year ago when Tyler Lorenzi was a kickballer. He knew how to have a great time and he never met a stranger.  Always kind and always had a smile on his face. He was a great teammate too, on and off the field. Apparently, his partying got him into some trouble here and there and was assigned community service. But thats where his troubles seemed to end and one of his callings began. He absolutely loved helping others in need so he began volunteering for community services any time he could.

Now, fast forward to May of last summer. A yacht with 10 people on it capsized in the night. 2 passengers didn't make it.  One was Ty Lorenzi. Now, I didn't have the pleasure of meeting him, but a lot of my teammates played kickball with him and knew him well. Some of his friends actually thought up an organization and called it CommuniTyler to spread Ty's selfless love and make a difference in surrounding communities. Its basically a community service effort motivated to pass on what Lorenzi left behind. The idea that started in his living room by a few friends grew to 400 participants in just a year!

On December 3, CommuniTyler hosted its first event working in tandem with Habitat for Humanity and Adopt-A-Spot. 400 participants united in more than 15 cities across the United States to paint shelters, plant trees, build trails and more. Yeah, read it again... 15 CITIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATES! And I (Karen Savell) along with Stephanie Wacek, Alison Easterday, and Philip Tanner with his girlfriend Colleen got to be a part of it!

When we arrived at the Habitat house, we did the Battlestar huddle and cheered BalllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllSACKS!!!!!" and broke the huddle with a plan. The ladies would paint until their arms fell off and the men (I mean...the man!) would go around back and help put up posts to build a fence. So that's what we did...all morning....all afternoon...all day until our necks and arms were too sore to move! Thank goodness they didn't hand me a power tool or the house would not have been standing after I got through with it!  Just hand me a paint roller and no one gets hurt! We all had a great time painting, making a mess, refilling the paint pans, making a mess, painting some more and making a mess!  I think Alison Easterday wins the award of being the most painted! She was mostly white at the end of the day! (See damaging photos) Stephanie wins the award for the most paint in her hair, Phil wins the award for most muddy and I.....I still have a white speckled watch after 2 weeks of doing this project! (And I'm still trying to figure out how I got paint in my ear?!)

We made some good friends, too.  We all talked about Ty and how we met him, and things about him that made us laugh and just reminisced. Ty was on our kickball team, so it was only fitting to participate in this even out of respect for him as a friend and carry on what he loved most.

My teammates knew him well, and even though I didn't, I was proud to be a part of it. There's nothing better that says "Christmas" like helping a complete stranger who needs it. Ty figured it out, and I think we should follow in his memory.

CommuniTyler plans to hold a community project event every year. if you would like to be a part of it go to the CommuniTyler.org website and sign up to volunteer!

P.S.-I signed up long before I was invited to play on a team for the kickball tournament that Saturday and I felt so guilty not going to the tournament....until I had the experience of volunteering for CommuniTyler. Yes, I gave up playing kickball for volunteering! Am I sick or what?! Lol! Seriously, though, I had a fulfilling experience and I hope it catches on to the WAKA nation. I envite everyone to be a part of it! It's only once a year and it's for a great cause: To help people who really need it and to carry on Ty's legacy.  R.I.P. Ty