August 14 was Autism Awareness Night as the Dodgers joined Autism Speaks in raising awareness for autism. Autism Speaks aims to bring the autism community together as one strong voice to urge the government and private sector to listen to concerns and take action to address the global health crisis. Autism affects 1 in 88 American children.

Pregame ceremonies included children and adults with autism “taking the field,” the top fundraising family from teh Autism Walk throwing out a first pitch and recognition of the Executive Director Matthew Asner. Matthew has a brother and a son with autism.

For more information about Autism Speaks go to http://www.autismspeaks.org.

Created by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association (MLBPAA) in 2005, the Heart & Hustle Award is voted on by Alumni and active Major League players and is presented annually to an active player who demonstrates a passion for the game of baseball and best embodies the values, spirit and traditions of the game. On August 12, Nick Punto was presented the 2013 Dodgers Heart & Hustle award from Fernando Valenzuela.

Chai Lifeline, whose mission is to bring joy to children whose innocence ended when life-threatening or lifelong illness was diagnosed, visited Dodger Stadium on August 12 to watch the Dodgers take on the Mets. More than 160 seriously ill children, their families and counselors enjoyed the game during the Chai Lifeline West Coast’s annual Dodger Night. Several of the children were able to go down to the field for a pregame visit and to say the famous words that begin every Dodger home game “It’s time for Dodger Baseball”. Through events like these, Chai Lifeline allows seriously ill children to restore a sense of normalcy by experiencing creative and innovative activities.

The Dodgers hosted the sixth annual ThinkCure! Weekend August 9 through August 11.The weekend promoted awareness and raised funds for cancer research. ThinkCure! is an innovative, community-based non-profit that raises funds to accelerate collaborative research to cure cancers. Its vision is to bring Southern Californians together to work towards a common cause to cure children and adults with cancer. ThinkCure!’s partners and beneficiaries are two of the leading cancer research institutions, City of Hope and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

This year’s ThinkCure! Weekend events included programming on the Dodgers’ broadcast partner stations throughout the weekend, celebrity involvement, in-stadium auctions, stories from cancer patients, survivors and their families, in-stadium recognitions and the ThinkCure! logo was painted on the field. Also during ThinkCure! Weekend, Dodger ushers wore ThinkCure shirts.

From Aug 9-14, 140 youngsters, ages 7-12 took part in the Dodgers Youth Baseball Camp where they learned from Dodger coaches, trainers and Dodger alumni. Campers learned and practiced the fundamentals of baseball in hitting, fielding, baserunning and pitching as well as team play, sportsmanship and conditioning. Each day at the end of camp they were visited by a current player for Q&A.

On August 9, Andre Ethier make a stop at The Grove to speak to a group of 140 low to very low income students who were graduating from middle and high school. 120 students were from various South and East LA high schools and members of the South Central Scholars organization. They all had recently completed a 7-week scholars program at USC and all were graduating to attend 4-year universities. 20 students from the Helping Young People Excel (HYPE) organization were graduating from middle school with 4-year scholarships to attend private high schools.

Dodger catcher A.J. Ellis hosted the Ninth Annual Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation Bowling Extravaganza at Lucky Strike Lanes LA LIVE on July 29. Ellis was joined by Dodger coaches Don Mattingly, Trey Hillman and Steve Yeager and Dodger players Chris Capuano, Carl Crawford, Jose Dominguez, Mark Ellis, Tim Fedorowicz, Adrian Gonzalez, J.P Howell, Clayton Kershaw, Hanley Ramirez, Paco Rodriguez and Chris Withrow. Money raised at the event funds various Foundation programs under the pillars of sports & recreation, education & literacy and health & wellness.

Adrian Gonzalez’s Viva Los Dodgers hosted families from The Mothers of East LA, an organization made up of mothers and allies dedicated to creating a more stable quality of life through environmental protection and community development for families throughout Los Angeles’ Eastside.

The Dodgers also recognized outstanding leadership and service in the Latino and greater Los Angeles community with the “Heroe de la Comunidad” award. The July 28 recipient was Carlos Vaquerano, Executive Director – Salvadoran American Leadership & Educational Fund (SALEF). SALEF’s mission is to promote the civic participation and representation of the Salvadoran and other Latino communities in the U.S.

As part of Korean Heritage Day on July, U.S. Navy Lieutenant Susan Ahn Cuddy of Los Angeles was honored as the Dodgers Veteran of the Game. Cuddy is American born and daughter of one of California’s first Korean immigrant families. Her father Dosan Ahn Chang Ho and her mother Yi Hye Ryon (Helen Ahn) were the first married couple to come to the US from Korea in 1902. Dosan was a freedom fighter who dedicated his life to save Korea from Japanese imperialism. Her mother was a central figure in the early Korean community in Southern California. Helen Ahn instilled patriotism for Korea and America in Susan.

Cuddy enlisted in 1942 to defend the United States after the attack on Pearl Harbor. She was stationed across the country serving as a WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) Link Instructor training Naval Pilots in Air Combat and Gunnery tactics. Cuddy worked with U.S. Navy Intelligence and become the Division Director for the National Security Agency. She worked on many top secret projects for the Department of Defense and other agencies during her service with the United States Government. Her accolades include the 2003 Women of the Year from the California State Assembly and the American Courage Award from the Asian American Justice Center in Washington, DC.

Korean Heritage Day also included pre-game a pregame performance by members of the Korean mega-group Girls’ Generation and the National Korean Taekwondo Team. “American Idol” 2012 finalist Heejun sang “God Bless America.” Following the game Hyun-Jin Ryu and Girls’ Generation were named as honorary ambassadors of Korean Tourism.

As part of MLB Players Trust Buses for Baseball, 50 youth from A Better LA visited batting practice and were greeted by Dodger players Chris Capuano, Matt Kemp, Nick Punto, Yasiel Puig, Tim Federowicz and Andre Ethier. The kids received t-shirts and meal vouchers. Buses for Baseball gives underprivileged kids throughout the United States and Canada the chance to attend a Major League game as personal guests of the players. A Better LA, founded by NFL coach Pete Carroll, is a nonprofit organization that supports community-based solutions to restore peace, save lives, and give Angelenos living in inner city LA the resources they need in order to thrive.