It's been quite some time since I last posted here, but I gave up collecting baseball memorabilia, and now I've put all of my emotion, passion, energy, and dough, into collecting Beatles photography & memorabilia only.
But I do browse, and when I saw this thread about Ben, I felt compelled to post. My sincere congratulations to you Ben, for putting together one of the most remarkable vintage original Baseball Photography collections extant!
I met the big guy the same way I met our mutual friend/genius Graig Kreindler... on ebay. I thought I was a passionate collector. Then I met Ben.
As Graig pointed out, Ben has ruffled a few feathers along the way, (especially mine!) but so has many others. However, Ben is a man of strong convictions, and once you get past that armour, he's a loyal friend, and a down to earth guy, that cares deeply about what's important to him. He's been very supportive, positive, and uplifting of my spirits, (as have a couple other guys here
) due to my medical issues, especially over the last year. But, that's the kind of person Ben is.
I felt the need to elaborate here as in the two days that Gary was kind enough to start it, (Hi Gary!) just a half of dozen people took the time to congratulate Ben on such a terrific honor.
I guess being honest and straightforward isn't as admirable as I thought it was. I know for a fact that Ben has helped countless people here on the board, and in person at the Nationals for the last several years.
So, I want to say "thank you" for paying it forward, Ben. You took the handoff and broke new ground for this exciting sector of the hobby. And everyone that collects photos should be grateful for what you, and a few other fellas here, have done to advance the hobby. Well done big guy! And... North Dakota Football RULES!