LAWRENCE — A shared passion for baseball has brought together two boys from two different worlds.

Elvis Calcano, 12, who is deaf, will learn more about the game when he attends the Mike Bush Fantasy Baseball Camp for the deaf and hard of hearing in Missouri from June 23 to 27.

It's all thanks to Anthony D'Ambrosio, 11, of Boxford, who cleaned neighbors' garages and washed their cars to raise more than $1,000 to enroll Elvis in the camp.

Once he told people why he was trying to raise money, they contributed between $50 to $100. Anthony also sent an e-mail to members of his team, the Boxford Cardinals, and Little League officials in town.

"A lot of people have a chance to learn about sports and he didn't, so I felt bad," said Anthony, a sixth-grader at Shore Country Day School in Beverly. "I feel good now because he gets to go to camp."

The two boys met for the first time Wednesday when Anthony and his parents, Gerry and Michelle, attended Elvis' baseball practice.

"Having Anthony come to my practice is better than going to camp," Elvis said.

Anthony presented Elvis and his mother, Ingrid Hiraldo of Methuen, with a check for $1,000 on the field at Emily Wetherbee School on Newton Street.

"I'm so thankful," Hiraldo said.

In turn, Anthony was recognized by Isabel Melendez, founder of the Roberto Clemente Little League, and state Rep. William Lantigua, D-Lawrence, for his selfless act.

Anthony heard about Elvis through Mark Balding, a board member for the Boxford Little League.

"It was so emotionally draining when we were filling out the camp application. I felt I was sending my own daughter to Europe," Balding said.

Gerry D'Ambrosio said it took his son about a month to collect the money.

"That's one thing about baseball, there's a fraternity there among the boys," D'Ambrosio said.

Balding met Melendez last year when the Boxford and Lawrence teams played 12 games against each other.

Melendez said Balding took such an interest in Elvis, he went out of his way to help — checking the Internet to find resources for him. Balding then found out about the Mike Bush camp, the only baseball camp in the country for children, ages 7 to 14, who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Anthony then took on the project.

"It's actions by children like him that makes the world a better place," Melendez said.

She said Sal Lupoli, owner of Salvatore's Restaurant and Sal's Pizza, also donated $250 for airfare.

Elvis was able to communicate with the D'Ambrosios with the help of Barbara Peters, his Big Sister for the past two years through the Big Brothers-Big Sisters program.

During their conversation, Gerry D'Ambrosio offered to take Elvis to a Red Sox game later this summer.

"The real Red Sox?" the boy asked. "We're going all the way to Boston? On the highway? They can really hit the ball high."

"I can bring my glove," Elvis said after pondering for a minute, and pointing to the glove on his hands.

Between talking and posing for photographs, the boys got to play the game they love.

Anthony hit the ball to left field, not once, not twice, but three times. Elvis stood against the fence with his mouth open.

When it was time for him to hit, Elvis tapped his cleats with the bat and took a swing at the ball thrown by his coach.

After watching the ball fly off his bat, Elvis ran to first base and then stopped at second as his mother, coaches and teammates cheered. With his heart still racing, Elvis could only imagine their excitement — he lost his hearing at 11/2 after a bout with meningitis.

But Hiraldo said her son always had a keen interest in playing baseball. After many years of seeing Elvis sulk when he saw other children playing, she decided to sign him up for the Roberto Clemente league.

"When she called, I told her, 'We'll take him,'" Melendez said. "I saw the happiness on his face and I couldn't say no."

Elvis plays on the Athletics, one of 18 teams run by the Clemente baseball league.

Coach Jose Padilla said having Elvis on the team is a learning experience.

"Baseball is all about signs, and I try not to do a lot of talking on the field so Elvis can feel comfortable," Padilla said.

"When he first came, he didn't know anything about the game and didn't even know how to hold the bat right," Padilla said. "He has adapted very well, and now he has a flow of the game."