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DALLAS-FORT WORTH ACTION TEAM: VOLUNTEERS STAR IN THE NEW ACTION TEAM PSA

Behind the Scenes as Action Team Captains and Major Leaguers Invite All Schools to Get in on the Action!

The latest buzz around the Action Team is that now every school in the country can join! Enroll your school today and launch an Action Team in September 2009. (Get the details here in the Volunteer Center at Join the Action Team!)

That’s Action Team Captain Blanca Garoz in the center and player Shane Victorino on the right in this photo from the PSA.

Who better to spread the word than current Action Team Captains and Major League Action Team players, pitcher Jake Peavy (Mobile, Alabama Action Team) and center fielders Curtis Granderson (Detroit Action Team) and Shane Victorino (Philadelphia Action Team). This trio appear in a new Public Service Announcement (PSA) inviting all high schools to “Get in on the Action!” With them are Dallas-Ft. Worth Action Team Captains from three city high schools: Booker T. Washington, Skyline, and the Education and Social Services School at Townview Center.

Lights! Camera! Action Team!

What’s it like to shoot a PSA? Here’s the inside scoop from three of more than a dozen Dallas Action Team Captains who volunteered their time to encourage every school to get in on the action and join the Action Team.

Starting with Auditions

Dallas-Ft. Worth Action Team Captains were invited to audition for the PSA. “We had to talk about our volunteer experiences,” explains Zach Reown. When you catch the PSA and hear Zach’s voice (he’s in the scene at the food bank), you’ll understand one reason he was chosen – and why this senior who will major in law in college also plans to minor in radio broadcasting.

Early on the Set

The PSA was filmed on a Saturday, but no sleeping in for the Action Team volunteers! The day started early – very early – 6:30 A.M. for senior Blanca Garoz. The PSA features the players and Action Team Captains involved in different kinds of volunteer activities. Blanca worked with fellow teens and Major Leaguer Shane Victorino on an outdoor cleanup project.

“I had one line,” says Blanca. “It was, ‘SO START AN ACTION TEAM IN YOUR HIGH SCHOOL TODAY!’ and we did it at least 20 times. The director had me say the line with different poses and motions. Everyone was so patient, but it takes a lot of time. I was there until 3:00 P.M. – and I had to leave early!”

Keeping Kids Quiet and Entertained

“My job for the PSA was difficult!” declares Aileen Mokuria. “I read a book to a group of young kids, and then one of the players, Curtis Granderson, spoke the line, ‘Get in on the Action!’ So I had to figure out how to keep the kids entertained and quiet while he spoke his line – over and over! There were so many takes – to speed up or slow down. I ended up playing I Spy with the rule that the kids couldn’t speak. I’d say, ‘I spy something green on this page’ and they had to point to what it was. It was a fun experience, and I gained so much respect for actors. Being in front of the camera is hard work!”

Action Team Captain Aileen Mokuria (holding book) entertains as the camera crew sets up.

Curtis Granderson (back row, far left) poses with Zach Reown (front row left) and other Action Team Captains who helped out at a food bank for the PSA.

Major Leaguer Jake Peavy (center) with two mural painters for a PSA scene.

From PSAT to PSA

Before the PSA shoot, Zach Reown had the PSAT to take that day. He went directly from the test to the set, arriving at 5:00 P.M. to work with player Curtis Granderson and other Action Team Captains unloading food at a food bank. The excitement of meeting Granderson shook off any post-test fatigue for Zach, who has seen Granderson play in Detroit Tigers-Texas Rangers games at the Rangers stadium. “It was very cool. He asked me about myself and the sports I play,” Zach recalls. “Everyone on the crew was so nice,” he adds, “and when it was over, there was food for us.”

Getting to Know Major League Players as People

Working with the baseball players was a high point for all of the teens. “We ate lunch together and we all talked about our families and high school,” says Aileen Mokuria, “just like regular people.”

Blanca Garoz was impressed with how the Major Leaguers interacted with others. “The players were as excited to be part of this as everyone else. Jake Peavy worked on a mural with developmentally disabled kids and adults, and he was so easy to be around.” (Check Major Leaguers In Action for more about these players’ commitment to the Action Team.)

Many Reasons to Join the Action Team!

None of the teens had been in a PSA before and all agreed it was an exciting and unique experience. Each one was also motivated to take part by a passionate belief in community service and in the Action Team.

“It’s amazing to be part of something big like the Action Team,” Blanca Garoz confirms. “To know that it’s not just you volunteering, but that other kids in your city and around the country are also Action Team volunteers.”

To echo his line in the PSA, Zach Reown encourages all students to start an Action Team in their schools. “Just because you’re young doesn’t mean you can’t do something to make a difference. The Action Team provides a great way for students to work together to help in their communities. And now it’s happening all across the country.”

Aileen Mokuria has been an Action Team Captain for two years. (Get her profile in Teens In Action.) “I’m so happy to have found the Action Team,” she explains. “There should be an Action Team in every high school. The experience of volunteering is invaluable to a person’s life. You can do activities you love and help people too. The Action Team also gives rewards for service [such as through scholarship opportunities]. You really help yourself as well.”