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The Launch of KBI, Part 7: The Vision for the future!

In the days after the camp, many things became very clear to me about the opportunities that we have in Kosovo. Pete and I had some great conversations about how we see God working and how we think He has been setting Global Baseball up to have major impact in Europe.

It became clear through our visits with church leaders and other friends in Kosovo that there are a number of ways that baseball could be used to impact this nation...

So...I'd like to use this final post in the "Launch of KBI" series to share with you the vision for this Kosovo Baseball initiative as it stands right now.


We are really excited for this vision of the future; it's big, a bit overwhelming, but we totally believe that it is also achievable and within reach! The vision is essentially split up into three distinct but overlapping focus areas: National Federation, Local leagues, and Field Complex/job creation.

Nationally, we will to partner with the Kosovar Olympic committee and Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sport to establish the Kosovar Baseball Federation. During this time we will also work with the Foreign Minister and the International Baseball Federation to secure international recognition for Kosovo Baseball.


At the same time, we will begin to work locally to form small, independent leagues (with Little League International, at first) and baseball clubs which will operate within the national federation. Our first focus area will be in and around the city of Gjakova.

In order to support both the local and national efforts, we hope to acquire land in order build a baseball complex, which will provide field space, training facilities, dorm facilities, a conference center, and offices for the baseball federation.

We plan that this complex will be used for baseball activities including national and regional tournaments, after school tutoring, job training, a conference center for other NGO’s, and a base for outreach and humanitarian help for the outlying areas.

As a key component to supporting the development of baseball in Kosovo, there are some exciting avenues for the creation of dozens of jobs, with specific job and skill training for local Kosovars.


We are really excited about this and hope that you will be excited too. We'd love to have you on board as a financial partner to help make all this happen. If you are interested in joining the Kosovo Baseball Initiative team as a financial donor, please check out our specific needs as we get started with this exciting project!

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