On July 19th, the Fredericksburg Nationals had a special guest throw the first pitch at their baseball game against the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers. Four-year-old Levi Colon, who is scheduled for a liver transplant in September, was guided through the stadium to the pitcher’s mound to start the game. “They were very accommodating when we got to the field,” Levi’s mother, Liz Colon said. “It was super exciting.”

Levi developed symptoms of Progressive Familial Intrahepatic Cholestasis (PFIC) at just three months and is now waiting on a life-saving liver transplant. Fortunately, the liver is a regenerating organ, meaning a small piece of a functioning organ will be given to Levi and the donor’s organ will regrow itself. While Levi’s mother is the primary donor as of now, the family is still looking for a backup donor should something go wrong. 

When he’s not in doctor’s visits, Levi loves superheroes, singing, and baseball; however, baseball has recently become more difficult for him. “One of the outcomes of this disease is that he gets really itchy, and the best way to control the itching is through cool air,” Liz says. “We really just get to play during cooler days.” Despite the stress and limitations of his condition, Liz says he remains “smart as a whip and hysterical.”

The idea for Levi to throw the first pitch at a FredNats game came about when Liz was offered baseball tickets from a friend. “He called me about an hour later and says, ‘Your son is going to be throwing the first pitch that day,’” Liz says. “He had called the FredNats and had talked to them about Levi throwing the first pitch. He arranged all of that for us.” Afterward, Liz contacted family and friends, hoping to make it an event where they could all be there to support Levi. “It turned out really nice,” Liz said about the throw. “He loved seeing himself on the big screen.”

For further information on Levi, his condition, or donations, please visit:

• Website: Liverforlevi.com
• Instagram: @liverforlevi
• Facevook: @liverforlevi