Aidan’s love of baseball started early. His father, a Chicago native, is a life-long Cubs fan, as well as a former baseball player himself, so Aidan gravitated to baseball naturally. He played for Central Little League from when he was 5 years old until he aged out. If it were allowed, he probably would have stayed longer! In fact, he returned to Central LL as an umpire because he loved being on that field so much and he enjoyed helping kids learn the game just as he had.
From the beginning Aidan showed an aptitude for pitching and for playing catcher, and he played both positions throughout his time at Central. He became a dominant pitcher who would post the best earned run average for Charlottesville High School’s varsity baseball team in the spring of 2021 as a sophomore. But it wasn’t always all strikeouts and high fives for him. When he was eight years old if something didn’t go his way or the umpire made a bad call (in his estimation) he could lose his focus, and his pitching control along with it. He had to learn to control his emotions in these situations and to stay focused on the task at hand. This was an extremely valuable lesson not only for baseball but for life in general. He also learned teamwork, friendship, and leadership at Central. There’s a reason folks talk about the “baseball family.” Aidan made lifelong friends at Central Little League.
In the spring of 2021, while conditioning for the baseball season of his junior year at Charlottesville High School, Aidan developed a pain in his hip that his doctor thought was a strain from his new exercise routine. But after months of physical therapy, medications, and scans, we learned at the start of his junior year that Aidan had metastatic Ewing Sarcoma. After many rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, and missing his junior year baseball season, he was declared to be in remission in the summer of 2022 and we all hoped Aidan would be cancer free for good. But just two months later it returned. When he heard the news, the first thing Aidan said was, “but I wanted to play baseball this year.” So he juggled trips to Duke University Medical Center for a clinical trial with his game schedule and was able to play his Senior year season of baseball for CHS in the spring of 2023.
Aidan lost his battle with cancer on August 1, 2023, less than 8 weeks after graduating from CHS.
Aidan never forgot his baseball roots at Central Little League. He loved to go out to the field in the off season and throw and hit with his dad. The field at Pen Park was a second home to Aidan. He knew from experience that Central Little League had a desperate need for lights and the added practice and game time they would facilitate, so he made it his final wish that funds be raised in his memory to acquire them so even more kids would learn to love the game of baseball as much as Aidan did.
- Becca and Adam Peters (Aidan's Parents)
Please consider donating to the Aidan Peters Lighting Fund using one of the methods below:
Central Little League Venmo:
*Please earmark donations for the Aidan Peters Field Lighting Fund by putting "Aidan's Lights" in the memo line*
Central Little League Venmo Account
Checking:
*Please earmark donations for the Aidan Peters Field Lighting Fund by putting "Aidan's Lights" in the memo line*
Make checks payable to:
Bill Hamrick
Central Little Treasurer
2950 Magnolia Bend
Charlottesville, VA 22911
Cash/Other:
Contact treasurer Bill Hamrick at [email protected]