By Mary Barringer

Jaden Bigham is the youngest of four, with three older sisters. He grew up in Mounds and has always been a high achiever. He is a senior who has been on the high honor roll throughout his academic career. He likes all his classes, but math and science are his strong suits.

He says he is “stressing” about his future. Jaden would love to get a scholarship to play baseball at a college. He has been playing since he was three and “old enough to swing a bat.” He displays his versatility by playing a variety of positions, including pitcher, shortstop, and catcher.

A talented pitcher who can “paint the corners” with an 80 mph fastball, Jaden seems to have a bright future in baseball. Like any great ball player, he is exploring his options, including trade school to become a welder and a possible career in the military.

Jaden knows time is short and he needs to make a decision, but he is no stranger to challenges on or off the baseball field. He lived with his 65-year-old grandmother for three years. She loved watching him play ball. Sadly, he lost her when he was only thirteen. She was the glue that held the family together. After her loss, the family seemed to split apart. Her loss was compounded just a few years later by the loss of his 83-year-old great grandfather. Jaden turned to baseball to deal with their loss and the damage to the family dynamic he knew; it was his coping mechanism.

He knows she would be proud of his achievements, such as making the all-conference team last year.

After high school, Jaden wants to leave Mounds for places that offer more. He can hear the warm climates and sandy beaches of the Bahamas calling his name. Still, he is a realist. Growing up in a community where wealth is virtually non-existent, Jaden has seen poverty and what it can do to children and families first-hand.

He would change the world by helping those in need, “the less fortunate.” One day after he has his career and life in order, and he is living elsewhere, he may come back to help the needy in Mounds.

Mounds may one day be the site of the Jaden Bigham Baseball Camp — a place where underprivileged youth can bring their A 2000s to learn the art of “painting the corners” and catching an 80 mph fastball, a high infield fly ball, or a dream that may take them in an entirely new direction en route to their own future.