A fundraiser and personal note
I didn't get a chance to write about this the other day, it wasn't out of a lack of interest. Joe Girardi is teaming up with YES broadcaster Michael Kay and CBS Sports's Jim Nantz in a benefit for Girardi's Catch 25 Foundation and Alzheimer's Research. The event, titled "Remember when, Remember now" will be held Wed., Nov. 19th at Grand Central Oyster Bar (in Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal). All proceeds from the fundraiser will go to Alzheimer's research and assistance.
I knew that Joe Girardi's father, Jerry is suffering from Alzheimer's, but I did not know that Michael Kay and Jim Nantz (who I don't know personally at all) also have had a parent suffer from Alzheimer's. It is really a terrible disease. My grandmother and namesake, Kathleen Enzler, died after battling Alzheimer's for a number of years. Towards the end, she didn't know any of her children and even before that would confuse them with somebody else. She would think people on the TV were intruders. These are just a couple sad stories. It's a horrible illness and one I hope we find a cure for soon.
Tickets for this event are $250 per person. For info and ticket purchase call 212-490-7109 or 1-800-622-7775, or email info@oysterbarny.com
Here's a comment from Michael Kay: "Alzheimer's is one of the more insidious diseases for both the patient and the family. It is heart wrenching to lose the one you love while they are still living and breathing. My sister and I went through it with our mom, Rose. It's devastating. There is simply not enough funding for this disease which will eventually touch everyone in this country as the population grows older. We're hoping this night brings more awareness and funding to find a cure and spare future families this heartbreak."
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Comments (14)
I have to agree with you Kat, Alzheimer's is an awful disease that can drag an entire family down.
I always joke with my brother that I'd be lucky if my mom got Alzheimer's so she would stop asking me for money, but I really can't imagine what Joe Girardi and all the other children of AD sufferers go through.
I hope the fundraiser is a smashing success.
My mom is a clinical psychologist and works with Alzheimer patients.
any money raised to stop it is good money
Like others here I have a close family member sinking gradually into the pit of Alzheimers Disease. It's like seeing someone's mind struggle in quicksand. Thanks for promoting this benefit.
People may consider these points inappropriate on a thread about such a terrible disease, but here goes.....
Now I've never been a big fan of the site NoMaas because they are often full of themselves and still manage to find ways to rip Torre 12 months after he left the Yanks. Get over it, already.
However, they are dead on in a post written last night regarding the increasing number of Yankee fans who want Cashman to sign Burnett and Manny Ramirez:
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Yankee fans are in a very unusual position with the Bronx Bombers not participating in October baseball for the first time in 14 years. There is even a generation of fans who have never experienced a playoff-less year since they have become rabid followers of the team. And with the emotion that results from this disappointment, we believe that some of them are throwing caution to the wind and advocating a balls-to-the-wall player acquisition strategy. While there is nothing wrong with being aggressive on roster construction, we have to make sure that we're not pushing for moves which parallel the decision-making that caused the Yankees to be in their current state.
Case in point is Manny Ramirez. Most fans would agree that the Yankees need to get younger. Yet, there is a contingent of people who believe the Yankees should signing the aging slugger into his 40s...on big money. This defies logic and represents a lack of understanding of what has crippled this franchise over the past few seasons.
Another example would be AJ Burnett. While everyone raves about Burnett's pitching arsenal, his injury history and actual results seem to be disregarded. He's only averaged 148.3 innings per year since 2000 and he'll be 32 in January -- that's a dreadful combination. Also, his actual results don't warrant the reputation he has received. His ERA+ of 106 this season ranked 25th in the AL (53rd in MLB) among pitchers with least 150 IP. He ranked 45th in VORP among MLB pitchers, only slightly ahead of Mariano Rivera. He's a good pitcher, but is he really going to be worth the risk of big money, long-term deal? Does he even deserve a big money, long-term deal? This has mistake written all over it.
It's one thing to be aggressive. It's another thing to be careless and not learn from the errors of the past.
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I've been making the same point about Burnett and Manny since the deadline.
It doesn't make a lot of sense to keep making the same mistakes that has helped put the franchise in this position in the first place.
Say no to Burnett. Say no to Manny.
It's been fun seeing what Manny can actually do in addition to being a near-miraculous hitter -- like make good plays in the field and run from first to home -- but my hope for him is that he finds a place to continue to play happily, well away from here ... I just can't see him in GI Joe's clubhouse, and I don't want to see him playing for rivals in our Division, so --
NL would be best for non-impact I guess, but he'll need to be a DH before his next contract is up, so we may have to expect him in our League.
Hopefully in a distant Division?
A terrible disease, one I have unfortunately encountered in my own family...I hope the fundraiser does well.
Whoever first called it insidious chose the right word. My grandmother died quite young of Alzheimer's when I was a small boy, and the effect on my mother's family was horrible. To this day, everyone in the family takes every simple instance of forgetfulness as a sign of the illness. I sometimes wonder if the worrying might be almost as bad as the disease itself.
DC,
I hear ya man...same happens with my family.
I came across this today, not sure how much credence you can put in an "un-named source" but found it interesting...so I thought I would share it with my fellow bloggers.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/67361-yankees-might-take-a-shot-at-k-rod
Ooops, "undisclosed source"
You don't have to be in that Yankee front office to know that there is zero chance the Yanks sign K-Rod.
Mo was outstanding this season and the arthroscopic surgery he had this week was minor.
There's a better chance that I hook up with Megan Fox.
That rumor is nothing but bunk - just like the Cano-for-Beltran deal that was supposedly in the works earlier this week.
It and of course the Beltran rumor will only be quickly forgotten once the hot stove begins. I can't wait to see some of rumors to come, lol!
Anyone else catch Hank referring to his employees as "piss-ants" in the NY Post?
I wonder if he meant all Yankee players, brass, peanut vedors and restroom attendants, or just the ones who speak their minds to the tabloids?
He's got a ways to go, but at times I think he might not have fallen so far from the tree, after all.
Anyone else catch Hank referring to his employees as "piss-ants" in the NY Post?
I wonder if he meant all Yankee players, brass, peanut vendors and restroom attendants, or just the ones who speak their minds to the tabloids?
He's got a ways to go, but at times I think he might not have fallen so far from the tree, after all.
Double post. Aargh! I was really sure that one didn't go through. But I'm even double posting in my sleep these days. Sorry.