MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Rhodes baseball team officially added one more name to its team on Friday, Feb. 14.
 
The Lynx have officially adopted five-year-old Derek Vincent through the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, a non-profit organization devoted to enhancing and strengthening the support system built around children with pediatric brain tumors.  
 
The Friends of Jaclyn Foundation's mission is to improve the quality of life for children and their families battling pediatric brain tumors, creating lasting relationships with athletic teams. FOJ places children with teams according to geographical proximity. Derek, who has been diagnosed with a Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, a tumor located in the pons (middle) of the brain stem, is from Memphis, Tenn.
 
The Rhodes squad will make Derek a member of the Lynx, as he will serve as the team's honorary captain for the 2014 season.  Derek is scheduled to throw out the first pitch tomorrow, Saturday Feb. 15 at noon as the Lynx take on cross town rival LeMoyne-Owen.
 
FOJ's programs are based on love, support, and friendship between the child, the child's family, and his or her "adopted" team. FOJ has completed over 230 adoptions in over 20 different sports. They currently have over 1,000 schools on a waiting list, as FOJ grows from a small organization into a larger one.
 
"We are all excited to have Derek join the team this season and our hope is we can give him a little extra strength to win this battle," said head coach Jeff Cleanthes  "He is the toughest guy on the team and we are all honored to call him a teammate!"
 
For more information about the Friends of Jaclyn organization, click here.
 
For more information about Derek's battle, click here.