A Great Opportunity for Boston Area Residents to Support Wounded Soldiers – October 19 in Danvers

My friend, Richie Sheridan, was Captain of the Hockey Team at West Point. Since leaving the Army to pursue a career in medical device sales, Richie has remained a staunch supporter of the Army hockey program. Richie mentored a young cadet, Derek Hines, Class of 2003. Derek, a native of my hometown of Newburyport, Massachusetts, also served as Captain of the United States Military Academy Hockey Team. After graduating from West Point, Derek served as a lieutenant with the Army in Afghanistan, where he was killed on September 1, 2005. In his memory, Derek’s family has created the Derek Hines Soldier Assistance Fund. The organization’s website articulates the goal of the fund:

Our goals are to provide support to Massachusetts's soldiers who are recovering from injuries incurred while on active duty.

In the e-mail from Richie Sheridan below, you will find details about a fund-raising activity for the Derek Hines Fund to be held on Friday evening, October 19 at the Sheraton Ferncroft in Danvers, Massachusetts.

This is a tremendous opportunity for many of us who believing in supporting our troops to put our money where our mouth is. I have already purchased my ticket for the event, and I urge you to consider joining the Hines family, the Sheridan and me on the 19^th.

Here is Richie’s invitation:

Dear Friends & Family,

We will be holding a Bingo Night benefit for the 1^ST LT Derek Hines Soldiers Assistant Fund Friday, October 19^th at 6:30pm at the Sheraton Ferncroft in Danvers, MA.

As many of you know, Maryanne and I were very close to Derek. We cherish the memories of sponsoring Derek as a cadet and take great pride in the accomplishments he achieved during his time on active duty. Please visit www.derekhinesfund.org to learn more about this superhero. Of particular note is the video of his Dad’s accepting the NCAA Award of Valor on Derek’s behalf in the news section of the website.

We hope you can join us. Tickets for the event can be purchased online at www.derekhinesbingo.org

I hope this finds you well,

Richie

I encourage you to visit the link to the Derek Hines Fund Website. You will be inspired by the spirit that drove this young man to accomplish great things in his sort lifetime.

I look forward to seeing many readers of The White Rhino Report in Danvers on the 19^th!

Al

Presidential Politics the Grass Roots Way – Electing a President of Red Sox Nation

As one who has followed the Boston Red Sox since I was 2 years-old (seriously – it was in the genes!), I am in awe of the continued growth of the phenomenon that has come to be known as Red Sox Nation. In every ballpark in the Major Leagues, a growing number of Red Sox fans fill the sits when the Red Sox come to town. Some of them are ex-patriot New Englanders eager for a glimpse of the old hometown team. Others are rabid Red Sox fans and current Boston area resident who travel to distant cities to see their beloved Sox in action outside of Fenway.

I was in Tampa/St. Petersburg last weekend for the three-game series against the Devil Rays. My sister lives in Tampa, so I try to time my visits to her so we can enjoy going together to see the Red Sox play at Tropicana Field. On Friday night, we were seated in the front row of the upper deck – looking down on the Red Sox bullpen. I saw a sign in left field that proclaimed: “Fenway Park South”! I had an unobstructed view of thousands of fans sitting in the seats below me. I counted hundreds – literally hundreds – of fans wearing Red Sox apparel. Familiar names jumped out at me from the backs of Red Sox jerseys – Schilling, Ortiz, Ramirez, Youkilis, Matsuzaka, Lester, Beckett, and Lowell. There were even a few retro jerseys reminding us of the glory days of Yaz, Pedro, and Fisk. As I scanned the crowd, I saw exactly one (1!) fan wearing a Devil Rays jersey – proudly proclaiming his support of Tampa ace Scott Kazimir.

In an article in a Tampa newspaper, Kazimir himself commented on the phenomenon of Red Sox fans taking over Tropicana Field and reversing home field advantage. Similar tales are told by players in Baltimore, Oakland and even the Bronx.

As Red Sox Nation has emerged as a recognizable phenomenon, it was almost inevitable that there emerge an election to choose a President to preside over the Nation. This morning, Tim Russert traveled to Boston to serve as moderator of a Presidential Debate among the finalists for the role of President of Red Sox Nation. That debate will be aired this evening on NESN after the telecast of the Red Sox game against the Minnesota Twins.

The list of finalists includes such familiar names as Peter Gammons, Jerry Remy, Rich “El Guapo” Garces, Sam Horn, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Mike Barnicle. I think it may be too late for Fred Thompson to throw his baseball cap into the ring!

To view the slate of finalists and their platforms, I commend you to this page on the Red Sox website.

http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/bos/fan_forum/redsox_nation_president.jsp

Enjoy!

And – Go Sox!