Sean Hudson is the director of military affairs for the Washington Nationals. He has several duties in this role, but the main goal is that he is proud to be in his position, he respects the men and women of the national uniform.
“We do a lot for our service members,” Hudson said. “We can always do more, but I hope we do a good job.”
HUDSON HAS SERVED IN THE MILITARY SERVICE
Hudson feels very connected to his work and the people they bring to Nationals Park because he is a veteran himself. After leaving college early, the New Jersey native served in the Air Force in a public relations role. His military career led him to travel to several foreign and domestic locations such as Turkey, Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany and even Italy. It was his duty They talk about service and fightingsomething he was proud of and realized he was good at.
Hudson shared, “People in the military work hard every day to beat our opponents around the world; our baseball team works hard to beat the Atlanta Braves. So telling all of that in that story from 2016 to 2020 was an incredible time and kind of sparked my interest in communication in general.”
Hudson shared that joining the Air Force was the second best decision he ever made. With love, he said, because as much as he cherished his time in the ministry, moving on made him apply the talents he had developed in a new way.
“It’s given me a lot of skills, a lot of opportunities, a lot of resources. And I’m really determined to put them to good use.”
HOW DO PEOPLE PROVIDE SERVICES TO SOCIETY
Hudson spent time at Disney Animation in California before applying for her current role with Nations. The team has three pillars of focus for its community relations. There are youth programs that sponsor little league teams, host coaching clinics, and even play players for students. There is also Nats Prep, which supports high school students who want to pursue a career in tourism and hospitality, by taking them and meeting with the different business units with the team – marketing, guest experience – and then they put all this together with what they learn in their various educational programs.
Then there is military support. There are 16 different bases in the National Capital Region, which means there are a lot of military personnel within a drive to the National Park. There are various programs that the team includes in the army throughout the year, but one of them can be the Base HIIT program. This spelling is correct because HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training. The team brings 275 members to the park to perform PT in the field.
“We’re the only team in sports that does that,” Hudson said proudly. They also gave out more than 4,000 tickets to military ID holders on April 17, Military Appreciation Day. Like other teams, members are also honored by the Nationals throughout the season. Hudson said it’s not just management or players who want to show their appreciation to military personnel and veterans; fans do too.
“The ideal behind all of this is supporting the Army, it’s what our fans want us to do. We understand that and we want to do it. We want to create lifelong baseball fans. That’s really important to us.”
FOR HIM ALSO IN THE FORM OF BEING
Another lesson that stuck with Hudson is the importance of being in shape. Working out and making healthy choices isn’t just for his own good. It makes him better for the people he works with and in his life.
Hudson explained, “Ideally, I take care of my body now, so when I’m old, it will take care of me at home.”
Hudson works out regularly and says she takes a holistic approach to fitness. Outside of the weight room, he offered three tips that can serve people of all ages for sports, service or general health.
Eat right and early.
Nutrition is considered as important as training, but it is still often overlooked. Being with the Nationals helped Hudson adjust his eating habits.
“When you wake up in the morning, if your first meal is at 10:00 or 11:00, you’re doing yourself a disservice. Better eating habits are something I picked up organically from working for a professional sports team.”
Prioritize mental fitness.
More and more coaches and trainers work with athletes on the mental side of the game and life, and this extends to the military as well. Hudson thinks it’s a good trend to jump on.
“Resolve to be able to work through challenges – all that stuff. Whether they’re on the diamond or in a corporate office like me, they have important skills, and you can always sharpen those skills.”
Give yourself grace.
Hudson acknowledged that not all workouts will be the same. Sometimes all he could have was a set or two, but he still checked the box. He says that every day doesn’t have to be perfect or even the same, be it skills, training or anything else.
“Someone once told me that before you can be good at something, you have to be bad at it. Allow yourself to be bad at things. Baseball is the only sport where if you fail seven times out of ten, you’ll be in the Hall of Fame.”
Whether it’s for your country, sport or community, Hudson serves as an example of how being your best self allows you to give your best to those around you and improve other aspects of your life along the way. Thanks to his personal and professional commitment to the people he works with at the Nations and their fan base, kids have better opportunities to connect to the game they love, the organization is more connected to its community, and the Army receives additional support and opportunities for recognition. One message he hopes will resonate with every service member who enters the National Park is that they are appreciated for what they do to protect freedom at home and abroad.
“We do a lot for our service members. We can always do more, but I hope we do a good job.”
To learn more about future HIIT Base events or other military-to-civilian activities, visit Nationals.com.
M&F Senior Military Editor Rob Wilkins contributed to this article.
