Jarren Sorters’ Last Baseball Tournament

THE EVERLASTING GIFT OF PICTURES

PRAIRIE GROVE — Action baseball and other photos of Jarren Sorters, who passed Aug. 11, 2016, at age 15, continue to pop up

“One of the biggest joys I get is when someone sends us a picture we’ve never seen before, or maybe it is one we’ve seen but forgotten about,” said Jarren’s mother, Donna Sorters. “It’s emotional, it’s heart-wrenching because there are going to be no more pictures, but at the same time pictures are a gift. It makes you smile to see a picture you’ve never seen. Having those pictures, it’s the gift of memories.”

Photos on this page were taken by Billy Don Cates during the last baseball competition Jarren participated in with his team, the NWA Muddogs during a 14 & Under tournament at Kansas City in June of 2015. Childhood cancer took Jarren Aug. 11, 2016, one month short of his 16th birthday that would have arrived Sept. 11, 2016.

“A lot of times I feel angry, yeah, we were robbed. I won’t get to see him graduate or get married or any of that other stuff,” says his father, Prairie Grove athletic director Joey Sorters. “But on the other hand, God is in control. He has a plan.”

Donna Sorters acknowledges the family will never understand why Jarren died so young this side of heaven, yet is grateful for each day they had together as a family.

“We focus on what we did have with him. What we did instill within him, what God worked with him.”

BILLY DON CATES SPECIAL TO ENTERPRISE-LEADER Jarren Sorters, then 14 (second from left), poses with his NWA Muddogs team during a tournament at Kansas City on June 26, 2015. Jarren had suffered a broken foot in Nov. 2013 and began complaining of pain shortly after the tournament. He was diagnosed...

BILLY DON CATES SPECIAL TO ENTERPRISE-LEADER Baseball players don’t know exactly when their final at-bat will come. Jarren Sorters was 14 when his came during a tournament at Kansas City in June of 2015. Childhood cancer took Jarren at age 15. His Christian family believes when he died Aug. 11,...

BILLY DON CATES SPECIAL TO THE ENTERPRISE-LEADER Jarren Sorters grins while making a throw from the outfield. A two-sport athlete, Jarren liked baseball and basketball. This photo was taken during the last baseball game Jarren, then 14, competed in during a Kansas City 14 & Under tournament June 27,...

BILLY DON CATES SPECIAL TO THE ENTERPRISE-LEADER Jarren Sorters winds up to deliver a pitch during the last baseball tournament he played in at Kansas City on June 27, 2015. Jarren passed from childhood cancer peacefully in his sleep nearly a year ago at his home at Prairie Grove on Aug. 11, 2016....

BILLY DON CATES SPECIAL TO THE ENTERPRISE-LEADER Jarren Sorters comes away from the fence throwing while patrolling the outfield. This photo was taken during the last baseball tournament Jarren played in at Kansas City in the spring of 2015.