MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama lawmakers Wednesday were forced to hand over the title belt for the second annual Battle of Tombigbee, a charity softball game between Alabama and Mississippi state lawmakers, after losing 16-11.
Proceeds from the game, however, will benefit the Children’s of Alabama hospital in Birmingham, which lawmakers said made the loss go down easier.
“I’ve enjoyed the fun part of it, but just as important is that we’re coming together to raise money for Children’s of Alabama,” Rep. Margie Wilcox, R-Mobile, told Alabama Daily News near the dugout of the Riverwalk Stadium. “We had a charity for (Mississippi) last year, so it makes you feel good that we can have fun and do something so impactful in our state.”
Children’s of Alabama has been named among the best children’s hospitals in the nation, and provides specialized in-patient, out-patient and primary care to children from all 67 Alabama counties. It also serves children from 47 states and seven countries. One of its recent patients, Anne Phillips Arrington, threw the first pitch of the game. A Montgomery native, Arrington, was diagnosed with bone cancer and had part of her leg amputated.
Arrington’s father, McMillan Arrington, praised the care Children’s of Alabama provided for her daughter, noting that without it, treatment would have required excessive travel and complications.
“If it weren’t for Alabama Children’s hospital, we would have had to leave the state,” Arrington told ADN.
The event was organized in part by House Majority Leader Scott Stadthagen, R-Hartselle, who told ADN in the dugout that beyond helping raising money for Children’s, the game was also an opportunity for lawmakers to bounce ideas off of each other.
“Just creating that relationship with our colleagues across the state line has been phenomenal; just us bouncing legislative ideas off and seeing how they do things versus how we do things and learning from one another has been great,” Stadthagen told ADN. “Most importantly, the Children’s Hospital… it’s a call that a parent never wants to have to make, but I’m glad it’s there if they have to make it. The lives they’ve touched, I’m just in awe, I really am.”
