In the cause of greater awareness, go to home plate at McCoy Stadium. If there is a place for the state to lay down its collective heart, it is here where the fastballs and curves come in. More than any other place, McCoy is where Rhode Island finds its sense of community.

If you’re in the stands Wednesday night, you will see this good place being what it has always been — a place to connect and see some baseball, have some dogs, enjoy a beverage.

When the managers of the PawSox and the Charlotte Knights come to the plate with umpire Rob Healey, someone else will be there, too. It will be Andrew Martin’s first plate appearance.

Andrew is 10 and he has gotten a bad break. He has A-T. It has put him in a wheelchair.

“It’s a bunch of diseases put into one,” says Healey, an umpire for 10 years who will be the crew chief at Wednesday’s game.

Officially, it’s ataxia-telanglectasia (atcp.org). It’s a genetic disease that afflicts children and, among other things, leads to a loss of muscle control, immune system problems and a high rate of cancer. Most people have never heard of it. Perhaps the most dramatic reminder of the disease came last year when runner Tim Borland ran the 62nd of his 63 marathons in 63 days in Rhode Island to heighten public awareness. He ran in honor of Andrew Martin. And this summer, a movie called Feat, which tells the story of three families dealing with the disease, will be shown at the Rhode Island International Film Festival.

But Wednesday night, Rob Healey and Andrew and a bunch of other people will bring it all home.

“Any little thing I can do to put a smile on that kid’s face,” says Healey. “He’s a great kid and this is a great spot.”

Healey’s wife, Lori, is Andrew Martin’s fourth-grade teacher at St. Rose of Lima School in Warwick. The school is where so many things have connected for Andrew and his family.

“Our family has been so blessed, and I do mean blessed,” says Cathy Martin, Andrew’s mother. “All the support groups — the school, the teachers — we are spoiled. Andrew has been touched by a lot of people.”

Andrew was just 4 years old when balance problems revealed the presence of the disease. In the years since, there have been adjustments as the disease has progressed. The Martins are grateful that Andrew is in the school he is in.

“There have been times when Andrew needs something and we’ll find the school has already taken care of it,” says Cathy Martin. “It’s done wonders for us, for Andrew.”

Wednesday night, Andrew heads to the plate. It is another good connection — from his teacher to his teacher’s husband to the place where his teacher’s husband will call the balls and strikes.

The PawSox are a class organization, says Healey, and when he went to team management with his idea for a special night for Andrew, it was put on the schedule for June 17. The team provided a block of tickets in right field for Healey to sell, with part of the proceeds going to A-T research.

Before going on the field, Andrew will visit the PawSox clubhouse.

He’s very excited, says his mother. All his friends will be there. It’s overwhelming.

It’s not his first time at McCoy, of course. He has been there for birthday parties. He watched one game in owner Ben Mondor’s box.

But this is his night. The PawSox and McCoy Stadium will again do what they have done so often and claim a special place in another Rhode Island life.

bkerr@projo.com