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ABOUT US

The Way Baseball Can Transform the World.

Jake Smith first visited Nicaragua in 2008, when  First Baptist Church in Paragould, Arkansas sent a mission team to spread God's Word across the country.  During the summer of 2014, when Jake was playing in the Texas Collegiate League, he connected with a Nicaraguan school principal, Gioconda Ordonez. She dreamed about starting a school baseball program at her school in Condega, Nicaragua, a city in northern Nicaragua. Her wish was the program would serve as an outlet for young men in the area—to remove them from the streets and present an opportunity to hear the gospel. 1and1 Ministries began shortly after and within four years we have grown to three locations, each in a different country and across multiple charitable sectors. 

The First Pitch: About Us

WHY "1AND1"

In baseball, 1and1 is the most decisive count. With the next pitch, the at-bat will either be in the pitcher or hitter's favor. In other words, the 1and1 count determines which way the at-bat will go. 1and1 Ministries hopes to be there for young people when they come to face the most decisive moments of their lives—when they can choose to conform to the ways of this world or let Christ be sovereign over their lives. And after careful thought and prayer, 1and1 Ministries was established with the motto, “Developing Disciples Through Athletics.”

The First Pitch: Text

Our Timeline

July 2015

1and1 Ministries officially begins operations in Condega, Nicaragua

August 2016

Medical operations begin in Estelí, Nicaragua

May 2018

Partnership started in Jonesboro, AR to revitalize Northside Park

January 2019

200 bat bags sent to Colombia for student athletes

January 2020

Equipment donated to establish league in Achuapa, Nicaragua

October 2020

Construction begins on dugout at Condega school

August 2015

Condega baseball field leveled to playable surface 

April 2017

Nolan visits the USA for the first time and sees American baseball fa

October 2018

Barranquilla, Colombia partnership begins 

May 2019

Second Nicaraguan expansion begins in Achuapa, Nicaragua

April 2020

200 cloth masks donated to Estelí pro baseball team and Condega school

June 2021

Nicaraguan handmade baseballs in Rivas, Nicaragua donated to Achuapa

January 2016

Nolan Cruz  joins Nicaraguan team as  baseball academy director

June 2017

Batting Cage built and first full Academy baseball team season

December 2018

1st baseball tournament hosted by 1and1 in Condega

June 2019

Donation of Stryker surgical equipment to Estelí hospital

May 2020

Hand sanitizer from Flor de Caña given to Nicaraguan Olympic Commitee

January 2022

Third Nicaraguan location established in Limay, Nicaragua

June 2016

Backstop finished, marking the only youth baseball field in Condega

December 2017

60 pairs of scrubs donated to local Estelí regional hospital

December 2018

Full-size sand volleyball court built in Condega

November 2019

2nd Condega baseball tournament hosted

June 2020

Cloth masks donated to expansion partner in Cali, Colombia

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