Courtesy Joe Rizzo                                 Firefighters and law enforcement officials pose during the first Guns and Hoses charity baseball game at Coral Seymour Memorial Park in Kenai in this undated photo.

Courtesy Joe Rizzo Firefighters and law enforcement officials pose during the first Guns and Hoses charity baseball game at Coral Seymour Memorial Park in Kenai in this undated photo.

Can-do crew takes on the boys in blue

3rd annual charity baseball game pits Nikiski firefighters against local law enforcement

Alaska State Troopers and local law enforcement will square off against the Nikiski Firefighters Friday night in the third annual Guns and Hoses Charity Baseball Game.

The game, which will be held at Coral Seymour Memorial Park in Kenai, will start at 6 p.m. Tickets are available for a donation at the door. Proceeds for the event support the Nikiski Children’s Fund, which is a nonprofit that provides school supplies and financial assistance to students attending Nikiski Middle/High School and Nikiski North Star Elementary. Through the nonprofit, a debit card is available at both schools that allows teachers to purchase anything from food for the weekend to winter boots to driving lessons when they see one of their students struggling to get by.

The Children’s Fund was started in 2015 by Carlee Rizzo while she attended Nikiski High School.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

This year Bailey Epperheimer has taken charge of the nonprofit as executive director. Epperheimer, who is entering her junior year of high school, said she was a little overwhelmed at being offered the role by Joe Rizzo, Carlee’s father and one of Epperheimer’s teachers.

“When he asked me if I wanted to be the executive director, my first thought was ‘Woah, that’s a pretty fancy title,’” Epperheimer said.

Epperheimer had previously done service-oriented work with the local 4-H chapter and at her church. Her role with the Children’s Fund will provide her with leadership experience as she sets her sights on college, she said.

Joe Rizzo said that last year the baseball game raised about $1,600 for fund, and a large portion of that came from local businesses who sponsor the event. During last year’s game, the local law enforcement didn’t have enough people to play, so Rizzo said that a few firefighters and some volunteers from the crowd helped to fill out the ranks. This year the firefighters will be looking to take home their first victory, and firefighter Eli Deatherage said that he’s been practicing his pitching with his 5-year-old to get ready for the big show.

More in News

Robert Weaver was last seen at the Doroshin Bay public use cabin on June 25, 2025. (Photo provided by the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)
Kenai wildlife refuge seeking information on missing man

Robert Weaver was last seen near Skilak Lake on June 25.

The Alaska Dive Search Rescue and Recovery Team conducts a training mission in Seward, Alaska in 2024. Photo courtesy of the Alaska Dive Search Rescue and Recovery Team
Anchor Point fundraiser to benefit Alaska rescue and recovery group

Alaska Dive Search Rescue and Recovery Team is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization established in 2016.

Kachemak Bay Family Planning Clinic staff (left to right) Angie Holland, RN; Jane Rohr, Sonja Martin Young, CNM; Robin Holmes, MD; and Cherie Bole, CMA provide an array of reproductive and sexual health services. (Photo provided by KBFPC)
Kachemak Bay Family Planning Clinic releases report on STI trends on the Kenai Peninsula

The report pulls from data gathered from 2024 to early 2025.

Pool manager and swim coach Will Hubler leads a treading water exercise at Kenai Central High School in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Swimmers, parents call on Kenai to support Kenai Central pool

The KPBSD Board of Education last week said communities will need to step up and take over administration of pools within the next year.

Traffic passes by South Spruce Street in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai drops effort to rename South Spruce Street

The resolution would have changed the name to make it clear which road led to North Kenai Beach

Gov. Mike Dunleavy compares Alaska to Mississippi data on poverty, per-pupil education spending, and the 2024 National Assessment of Education Progress fourth grade reading scores during a press conference on Jan. 31, 2025. Alaska is highlighted in yellow, while Mississippi is in red. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Dunleavy calls special session for August

Lawmakers on Wednesday said they were surprised by the move.

A makeshift coffin decrying the risks of Medicaid funding cuts is seen on Thursday, June 26, in front of the Blazy Mall in Soldotna. The cuts were included in legislation passed by the U.S. Senate early Tuesday morning. (Photo by Jonas Oyoumick/Peninsula Clarion)
Ahead of Senate vote, Soldotna protesters defend Medicaid funding

Cuts to the program were included in legislation passed by the U.S. Senate early Tuesday morning.

Board President Zen Kelly speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District’s Board of Education in Soldotna, Alaska, on Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai Peninsula Borough school board to finalize budget

The new budget designed by the committee will be considered at a public hearing during the full board meeting on Monday evening.

Most Read