Mick DuRussel had a bright idea. The next step was to make a celebrity softball game for charity come to life.
It was 2012. The then-longtime Ronkonkoma resident and now Ridge resident approached the Ronkonkoma Chamber of Commerce.
“And they loved the idea, and we decided to make it a breast cancer benefit since it’s so prevalent on Long Island,” said DuRussel, who owns an office cleaning service. “During the course of the next year, I was able to get all the celebrities together.
“We had the first game in 2013. We had The Cowsills. … We had a lot of celebrities. It turned out to be a big success, and we try to do it every year.”
The game went on a pandemic-induced hiatus in 2020, but it returned in 2024 with DuRussel still the organizer. Now the 10th edition of the Celebrity Chamber Softball Game will be in play starting at 2 p.m. Sunday on Field 9 at the CYA Compound on Easton Street in Ronkonkoma.
A team of 20 celebrities from the sports, entertainment, modeling and media fields will be there for a game against a team of mostly people who work in businesses in Ronkonkoma or live in the general area. The proceeds are bound for Making Strides Against Breast Cancer.
The sports-related names include former world champion boxers Roy Jones Jr. and Vito Antuofermo, ex-Jets fullback Tony Richardson, Yankees draft pick and former Montreal Expos pitcher Don DeMola, Travis Jackson, who used to be a Harlem Globetrotter and pro basketball player, and Brimstone, out of the pro wrestling world.
Broadway musical theater star Glory Crampton, actress, dancer and Vogue model Elina Hsiung and comedian Stacey Prussman are among the other celebrities.
“I know [the celebrities] enjoy it,” DeMola said.
DeMola, a Smithtown resident who won the 1970 Yastrzemski Award as Suffolk’s best high school baseball player with Commack South, has been the celebrity team manager throughout.
“I don’t [care] if you don’t know how to swing a bat,” DeMola said. “Everybody hits.”
DuRussel said admission is free, “but a donation is appreciated.” Funds also come via journal ad sales and sponsorships. The event raised about $20,000 each of the past two years.
“[The fans] can meet the celebrities,” DuRussel said. “They can get autographs and just come down and have a good time. The snack bar will be open. It’s a lot of fun for everybody. It’s a great day.”
