Business partners Ashref Elshazli and Ckori Jones have been friends since they played baseball together at Bowie State University. Today, they are managing partners of The Diamond Collective, a nonprofit baseball training cooperative in South Baltimore. Through the work of Baltimore Urban Baseball Association (BUBA) and other non-profit organizations, The Diamond Collective offers baseball training, academic support, mentorship, and leadership development.
“Programs include ‘Life After Baseball’ workshops, community service opportunities, and educational sessions that help young people succeed on and off the field,” says Jones. You could say The Diamond Collective brings good energy to Baltimore City youth—and BGE brings good energy to The Diamond Collective through its Small Business Energy Solutions program (SBES).”
BGE replaced outdated fixtures, integrated smart sensors and exterior floodlights, and enhanced lighting across batting cages, turf areas, classrooms, and exterior zones. These upgrades improved lighting quality, reduced energy costs, and created a safe, efficient environment for youth programming. All of this, while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 83.35 metric tons and saving the organization more than $8,400 annually.
“The project would have been significantly more difficult without BGE’s SBES program,” says Jones. In all, BGE provided more than $44,000 in incentives, allowing The Diamond Collective and BUBA to reinvest their savings, expand their reach and deepen their impact.
The way you effect change is to start with the next generation. Kids need a place to come and be actively engaged. Baseball is a tremendous sport that presents tremendous opportunities, and we are working to create those opportunities.
The Diamond Collective has rightfully attracted the attention of local leaders such as Governor Wes Moore, Mayor Brandon Scott, Comptroller Bill Henry, Under Armour executives, and five-time Major League Baseball All-Star Adam Jones, who will be the Keynote Speaker at the organization’s fundraiser this year.
“As my dad says, ‘You can’t do wrong by doing right.’”
