Posted By:
Michael SteeleGreat stories. Thanks for starting this Ted.
I really do not have an adult story of meeting a hero but I was a lucky kid as I got to meet and spend time with Carl Yaztremski in Novemeber 1967 at a Sportsman Show in Boston. This was of course, right after the impossible Dream season and Triple Crown year for Yaz so he was ultra popular in Boston.
The lucky part is that I have an Uncle who went to Merrimack College outside Boston and Yaz was taking classes also at Merrimack in the early 60's to finish his degree after leaving Notre Dame early to play pro. My Uncle and Yaz were friends during that time and socialized.
So here I was with my Dad and Uncle at the show and Yaz is the guest star of the show and my Uncle arranges for us to hang out with Yaz during a break in the show. Just myself, my Dad, Uncle and Yaz in a back stage room just talking for probably 20 minutes. I was pretty awestruck but I remember Yaz asking me my life ambitions showing me how to swing a bat, telling me to never give up in life and signing a couple of personalized photos. A nice memory of my childhood hero.
Michael