A health care company has purchased nearly 12,000 tickets in Camden Yards’ upper deck for the Orioles’ game Sunday, the largest group reservation in the ballpark’s history, according to a team spokesperson.
The massive ticket purchase is part of a “Family Fun Day” at the stadium for employees of Autumn Lake health care, which operates more than 30 nursing homes and rehabilitation care centers in Maryland.
The company’s Sunday festivities will also include all-you-can-eat dining in the upper deck for the company’s employees and their families, according to Rivka Heisler, Autumn Lake’s director of employee engagement. An Autumn Lake staffer will sing “God Bless America” during the seventh-inning stretch, and Suleiman Banire, the director of nursing at a Silver Spring facility, will throw the game’s ceremonial first pitch.
Heisler said she started planning months ago for the corporate event at Camden Yards. Sunday’s home game against the Miami Marlins is not the first major booking for the company’s annual outing — last August, Autumn Lake reserved the entire Maryland State Fairgrounds for employees at a spectacle that included a performance by country singer Jimmy Charles and appearances by retired Ravens players and the team’s cheerleaders.
“We want our employees to really understand that they’re appreciated,” Heisler said.
Those who purchased tickets on the upper deck Sunday had their seats upgraded for free, according to an Orioles spokesperson, who did not elaborate on where the fans were relocated. Autumn Lake employees who are required to work Sunday can get free tickets to Tuesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Heisler said.