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Jeff Schwarz Great stories, guys. My Dad is 88 now and really starting to slow down. He had an interesting life also. He went to the Kelloggs Baseball School and Tris Speaker told him "You can play!" After graduating from Schurz High School in Chicago, he played ball at Wright Junior College. The Cubs asked him and a number of local standouts to come down and workout with the Cubs in 1939. Gabby Hartnett was teaching him how to catch and he got to wear Stan Hack's hand-me-down jersey. He then attended the University of Illinois where his coach was former Yankee Walter Roettger.
During the war, his baseball playing ability kept him from going overseas as each CO at his assigned base wanted him on the camp baseball team. He played against Ted Williams, Van Lingle Mungo, Bobby Doerr, Satchell Paige, and with Dizzy Dean.
After the war, Dad finished school at Northwestern where his coach was Hall of Famer Freddie Lindstrom. What stories he has to tell!
Since 1982 at the National in Chicago, Dad and I have been gung ho on collecting. We were regulars at every Chicago show and dealers would tell me how great a guy he is, and I concur. I then brought my young sons to the shows with us for 3 generations of collectors. He has not attended a show in years, but his face lights up any time I find something from his wantlist and bring it by.