When Sam Bridgman, 16, realized he couldn't use his Make-A-Wish Foundation wish for a new baseball field for his Nathan Hale High School team, he decided to renovate the field as his senior project instead.
Bridgman-who was diagnosed in August 2006 with Friedreich's ataxia, a rare genetic degenerative nerve disorder-had originally wanted a two-part wish: to have the Make-A-Wish Foundation renovate the city's Meadowbrook Playfield for his baseball team and then celebrate afterward with a party in several Safeco Field suites.
However, the Make-A-Wish Foundation grants wish experiences that cost an average of $6,200, according to the foundation's website, so Bridgman's first wish couldn't be fulfilled.
Bridgman had initially declined to use a Make-A-Wish wish, said his mother, Amy Koepnick: "It meant accepting what he's got."
Bridgman ultimately chose to spend a day with the Seattle Mariners with his wish, but he was still determined to get the Raiders' field in shape. "We can still make it happen, right?" Koepnick remembered her eldest son asking soon after.
Still one of the guys
An avid athlete since he first picked up a ball at age 3, Bridgman has been the Nathan Hale varsity baseball team's manager since his sophomore year.
Bridgman didn't show any developmental problems that would have signaled a severe problem, Koepnick said. At 12, Bridgman was diagnosed with scoliosis. At 13, he often tripped over his feet while running, but they were attributed to "growing pains."
But by age 15, he was falling down more regularly and was more fatigued more often. During a medical checkup, Bridgman had no ankle or knee reflexes. It took two years for doctors to diagnose him with Friedreich's ataxia, a rare disorder that affects one in 50,000 people in the United States, according to the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance.
"I don't think about it," Bridgman said, "especially when I'm with my friends. I even joke about it when I fall down."
Bridgman is "one of the lucky ones: He's still walking. There are a lot of kids his age [with Friedreich's ataxia] who are not walking," Koepnick said. "You try to find some good in it whenever you can: He's still walking. He's still here. He still loves baseball."
Day with the Mariners
Bridgman's love of baseball was apparent during his Make-A-Wish visit with the Seattle Mariners on Aug. 25. With outfielder Raul Ibanez as his host, Bridgman made his way from the dugout, into the locker room and onto the field.
He was already familiar with Safeco Field because he's a fielder for the Mariners organization, handing out promotions at the gates and working the speed-pitch and photo booths. But with his wish, Bridgman was able to take 20 swings in the batting cages and five cuts during batting practice.
Bridgman, who incidentally delivers the Queen Anne News every week, also hung out with many of the Mariners players, sharing baseball stories with them and even recalling great plays from seasons past.
The players gave him three autographed baseball bats, three sets of wristbands, two pairs of batting gloves, an Ichiro Suzuki-signed ball and one signed by the entire team.
Make-A-Wish also provided a box suite, a limousine ride to the stadium and 300 baseball cards featuring Bridgman.
But when it came to him throwing the ceremonial first pitch, Bridgman lobbed it, his mother said, because he didn't want to risk the chance of it hitting the dirt in front of so many people.
"Watching him at batting practice, talk baseball [with the Mariners players], it was very emotional," Koepnick said. "We're very glad to have this opportunity.
"[But it's like] 'it's great to be here, but we wish we didn't have to be here,'" she said.
Bridgman shared the day with about 280 friends, including former teammates, teachers, and principals.
The challenge
The first-pitch launched Bridgman's campaign to renovate Meadowbrook Playfield, at 10533 35th Ave. N.E.
Ideally, Bridgman wanted the field done before baseball season starts up in March, but funding still needs to be secured for the $450,000 project, which includes improving the dirt infield and building a bigger dugout and new backstop. Improvements to the field's drainage system also are needed since the field is built on top of a swamp.
Additional monies would be used to upgrade to an Astroturf-like infield and to install bullpens.
Koepnick has already applied for a $100,000 grant from the Seattle Mariners, and D.A. Hogan & Associates in Seattle has volunteered its design services. Bridgman has solicited volunteer labor from his current teammates and money from the team's boosters.
"It's a challenge that others have taken up in the past," said head coach Keith Bosley. "But he's gone further than anyone I remember.... Him hanging it all on the line on a project that others may have failed at is pretty cool."
To help with Sam Bridgman's campaign to renovate Meadowbrook Playfield, contact Amy Koepnick, at 406-2194 or a.koepnick@comcast.net. The campaign needs a website designer, volunteer labor and in-kind contributions of services and materials. Cash donations also are welcome.[[In-content Ad]]
