Mat-Su Miners Nuggets Booster Club hosting special event

PALMER — Fans nationwide are counting down the days until pitchers and catchers report to their favorite Major League Baseball team. And in Alaska, in the heart of winter, while adding that extra layer of clothing and scraping the ice of the windshield, baseball faithful are dreaming of summer nights at Hermon Brothers Field, watching their Mat-Su Miners play.

The Mat-Su Miners’ Nuggets Booster Club has stepped up to the plate, ready to bridge the gap between the dead of winter and the days of summer. The group aims to keep the beauty of baseball alive during the offseason, with events such as the Nuggets’ Cabin Fever Reliever, slated for Feb. 27 at 6 p.m. at the Palmer Depot. The event is hosted with the theme, “Celebrating the Boys of Summer.” Nicole Calderea, the new Nuggets booster club president, said the event will be an example of the club’s embrace of the community and it’s team, the Mat-Su Miners. The food at the event will be catered by the Mat-Su Career and Technical High School culinary department. Local beer, wine and spirits will also be featured during the event.

Calderea said the booster club is putting an emphasis on supporting local business, as the club commits to support its local team.

Tickets are $35 in advance and $40 at the door, based on availability. There is a $20 ticket for designated drivers, and a commemorative glass will be given for guests to sample the local beer, wine and spirits.

Those interested in tickets can email gmminers@gci.net, contact Denise Christopher of the Mat-Su Miners at 841-4589 or Calderea at 398-5324.

Calderea leads a booster club board that also includes local Miners faithful Vonda Best, Erwin Easter, Wolfgang Winter, Michelle Heun, Barbara Gill and David Fuller. Calderea said the group aims to host events such as February’s Cabin Fever Reliever that will compliment longstanding Miners offseason events such as the dinner and auction during the winter, and the grand slam raffle in the spring.

With its work, Calderea said the club hopes to create another tie between the community and the Miners, annually one of the most successful summer collegiate amateur developmental programs in the Alaska Baseball League. Future endeavors include the goal to create a scholarship for local students to use toward their education.

Those interested in participating in the Nuggets Booster Club can email gmminers@gci.net.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.