JOHNSTON, Iowa — It's an Iowa tradition: Every year, the Iowa Baseball Camp for the Deaf is making "America's national pastime" accessible for kids who are deaf or hard of hearing.
The camp runs Monday through Friday and is dedicated to providing baseball experience for deaf and hard-of-hearing kids in Iowa.
"IBCD is just so important for deaf kids," said Sembetu Dalay, a camp volunteer. "It's just really important for people to know and see that, you know, to see our abilities... the kids struggle just like everybody else, but really, they're human and they can be just as successful as anybody else."
The camp is entirely free for kids, thanks to the support of sponsors and donors.
Beyond getting the chance to play, campers also get professional coaching and other perks, such as a private stadium tour and pick-up game with the Iowa Cubs.
But the most important part to the players is something much more simple than these perks.
"I really love to see the kids meeting each other, and they really have a lot of similarities," said Dylan Nulph, a volunteer coach. "They make connections and friends. And this is like the best sport in the country."
Camper Lani Dirks is attending the Iowa Baseball Camp for the Deaf for a few different reasons.
"Because I love baseball! and I just enjoy playing with other deaf friends," said camper Lani Dirtz. "I think it's special because I can sign and there are interpreters here. So there's great communication."
While the camp is only a week long, the memories and the friendships the kids create with each other will last for years.
"The deaf kids are spread out. You know, some go to Iowa School for the Deaf. That's great, but there's a lot of deaf kids [who] are isolated, maybe one or two deaf kids in one school," said James 'JJ' Jones, a camp volunteer. "But when they all come here, they get to socialize together and communicate the same language, sign language. So it's interpersonal communication."