Sunday, March 25, 2007
Out of tragedy, great art can be made. It serves to honor the memory and make relevant stories and situations that would otherwise go unheard or forgotten. In the aftermath of Sean Bell's fatal shooting by NYC police - two of whom have been indicted on charges of second- and third-degree manslaughter - Aurora Rose has composed a song, "Fifty Times." She's allowing me to host it, offering it up here:
On a similar note, I spent the last few days covering the 4th annual Special Abilities Weekend at the Baseball Hall of Fame, much of it trailing Ray Negron as he spoke to three audiences - a classroom in Michigan, a group of at-risk students from Albany and a group of Museum visitors. Negron has a great story: George Steinbrenner busted him tagging Yankee Stadium in 1973, and made him pay off his damages by serving as a batboy. Negron remained in baseball for the next 34 years, working mainly as a consultant and player agent. The two cousins who escaped when Negron was caught never made it out of the streets, slain by gunshots as young men.
But that wasn't why Negron was at the Hall. Last year, he wrote a children's book, The Boy of Steel, about a young boy with cancer who gets the chance to be a Yankee batboy, and must fight to be strong enough to accomplish his duties. The story was born of Negron's work with pediatric cancer patients, after a hospital visit when second baseman Robinson Cano - volunteering for the first time - said he'd try to hit a home run for a young boy. Cano went 0-for-his-first-four at-bats, forgetting the promise. During his fifth at-bat, in the bottom of the ninth, Cano hit a game-winning home run. Negron approached him after the game, and told Cano he was glad he honored his promise. Cano asked, "What promise?" Negron reminded him about the boy from earlier in the day. Cano's eyes went wide, and he exclaimed, "Oh, my god!" Cano later invited that boy to serve as honorary bat boy for a day.
Negron knew this was an important story. Approached by Harper Collins (through Regan Books) to write an autobiography, Negron redirected the project, focusing on publishing a children's book. "The Boy of Steel" was published in August 2006, eventually reaching No. 2 on The New York Times Best-Seller List for children's books. All proceeds from the book's sale go directly to the New York Yankees Foundation.
Having grown up in Brooklyn, I was skeptical. There's always an angle, I thought. Not with Ray. He means it. Really, really means it. This is important work he's doing, and I'm not letting people go without knowing it. Cheers, Ray. You've made me a better person in two days. I can't imagine the number of people you've done that for in 34 years. Thank you. From all of us.
On a similar note, I spent the last few days covering the 4th annual Special Abilities Weekend at the Baseball Hall of Fame, much of it trailing Ray Negron as he spoke to three audiences - a classroom in Michigan, a group of at-risk students from Albany and a group of Museum visitors. Negron has a great story: George Steinbrenner busted him tagging Yankee Stadium in 1973, and made him pay off his damages by serving as a batboy. Negron remained in baseball for the next 34 years, working mainly as a consultant and player agent. The two cousins who escaped when Negron was caught never made it out of the streets, slain by gunshots as young men.
But that wasn't why Negron was at the Hall. Last year, he wrote a children's book, The Boy of Steel, about a young boy with cancer who gets the chance to be a Yankee batboy, and must fight to be strong enough to accomplish his duties. The story was born of Negron's work with pediatric cancer patients, after a hospital visit when second baseman Robinson Cano - volunteering for the first time - said he'd try to hit a home run for a young boy. Cano went 0-for-his-first-four at-bats, forgetting the promise. During his fifth at-bat, in the bottom of the ninth, Cano hit a game-winning home run. Negron approached him after the game, and told Cano he was glad he honored his promise. Cano asked, "What promise?" Negron reminded him about the boy from earlier in the day. Cano's eyes went wide, and he exclaimed, "Oh, my god!" Cano later invited that boy to serve as honorary bat boy for a day.
Negron knew this was an important story. Approached by Harper Collins (through Regan Books) to write an autobiography, Negron redirected the project, focusing on publishing a children's book. "The Boy of Steel" was published in August 2006, eventually reaching No. 2 on The New York Times Best-Seller List for children's books. All proceeds from the book's sale go directly to the New York Yankees Foundation.
Having grown up in Brooklyn, I was skeptical. There's always an angle, I thought. Not with Ray. He means it. Really, really means it. This is important work he's doing, and I'm not letting people go without knowing it. Cheers, Ray. You've made me a better person in two days. I can't imagine the number of people you've done that for in 34 years. Thank you. From all of us.
Labels: Aurora Rose, Ray Negron, The Boy of Steel
