The Blue Wahoos will honor Matthew Chestnutt, his father Paul Chestnutt and the special needs community during Special Needs Night on Friday, part of the team’s final weekend homestand against the Biloxi Shuckers.
The first 1,000 fans will receive a Paul and Matthew Chestnutt Bobblehead. The event also will feature a pregame parade of people with special needs and their parents, a musical medley selected by Paul Chestnutt and ceremonial first pitches from members of the special needs community, including Blue Wahoos employees.
Members of Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and Rev. Steve Olson are scheduled to attend. Blue Wahoos co-owners Quint and Rishy Studer arranged and provided the event.
Matthew Chestnutt recognized Nelson Prada
Matthew Chestnutt is 23 years old and was born with the most severe form of cerebral palsy. He cannot walk, talk or eat by himself and uses a wheelchair, but he recognized Blue Wahoos manager Nelson Prada during a pregame workout.
Matthew reacted by lifting his arm to high-five Prada. “Howya doing Matty?” Prada said.
“There’s the communication, right there,” Paul Chestnutt said after his son reacted to the manager. “Matty is someone who cannot walk or talk, but he knows what’s going on. And what’s happening. He knows how to react.”
Blue Wahoos connect with special needs community
Quint Studer was a special education teacher for 10 years in Wisconsin after graduating from college in 1975. The Blue Wahoos employ 10 special needs gameday staff members in ticketing, greeting, information and ushering roles.
“When talking to our special needs employees, the number one thing I hear is that we make them feel normal,” Blue Wahoos team president Jonathan Griffith said. “We make it an environment where they know it’s not about their special needs, but rather a case where they have an important job and we have them on it.”
Paul Chestnutt said MatthewChestnuttScores!Charities has operated for more than 15 years after Quint Studer helped fund its start. Paul and Matthew Chestnutt were inducted into the Pensacola Sports Hall of Fame in 2014 as a father-son tandem.
Paul Chestnutt hosts sports talk programming on WPNN Radio and Fox Sports Pensacola and has been the radio play-by-play voice of the Pensacola Ice Pilots and Pensacola Ice Flyers. He said the Blue Wahoos provide Matthew with an opportunity to build social skills and connect with people.
“This is a huge night for the entire special needs community,” Paul Chestnutt said. “This is something that really has not been done anywhere.”
Source: Original report