Hillsboro Hops Fund Banquet Panel Announced

Hillsboro, Ore. (October 17, 2024) – The Hillsboro Hops will host the 11th annual Hillsboro Hops Fund Banquet on Saturday, November 23^rd at NW Events & Environments in Hillsboro. The event, which is presented by Barclays, will be headlined by a featured conversation “Future is Female” from four prominent women in baseball: Ronnie Gajownik, Rachel Folden, Ila Borders and Ciera Jones.

Gajownik, who was a member of the USA women’s baseball team that won a gold medal at the 2015 Pan-American games, was the Hillsboro Hops manager in 2023. The University of South Florida alum joined the Diamondbacks in 2021 and became the first female to manage a High-A team. After spending 2023 with the Hops, she spent the 2024 season with Double-A Amarillo as a bench coach.

Folden was inducted to the Marshall University Hall of Fame after starring on the softball team from 2005-08. After retiring from playing in 2012, Folden held coaching jobs with Encinal High School, Holy Names University, Valparaiso University and Elite Baseball Training. She was then hired by the Chicago Cubs as the “lead hitting lab technician” before being assigned to the ACL Cubs in 2021. Folden spent 2024 with the Double-A Tennessee Smokies.

Borders is a trailblazing figure in the world of sports and public service, renowned for her groundbreaking achievements as a professional baseball player, firefighter, and motivational speaker. She made history by becoming the first woman to receive a scholarship to play men's collegiate baseball and is also the first woman to win and pitch in a men’s professional baseball game. Borders' contributions to the sport have been immortalized in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, reflecting her status as a pioneer for women in baseball.

Jones serves as the softball programs coordinator for Friends of Baseball, a local non-profit in Portland. She is currently finishing her doctorate in Physical Culture & Sports Studies at the University of Texas with a focus on the impact of geography on the opportunity to play sports. Jones was recognized by Positive Coaching Alliance as a 2024 National Coach of the Year award winner. Ciera continues to find herself on the diamond coaching at Clark College.

The Hillsboro Hops Fund is a community benefits program, the goal of which is to promote, foster and support education, health, culture and youth activities, including activities for underprivileged youth, in the Greater Hillsboro area. Tickets and sponsorships opportunities are still available for the event by visiting https://hillsborohops.ejoinme.org/2024HopsFundBanquet