Tis the season. Overtime is going back on vacation for a little more rest and relaxation.
Check back the week of August 3 for more posts.
Archive for July, 2009
Meet Cliff Louis
When Westhill High School asked Cliff Louis to be its keynote speaker at graduation last month, a lot of students may have been wondering, “Who’s Cliff Louis?’
They were not alone.
Once he told his story, it was evident why Louis was asked to address his alma mater. Louis is an example of the possibilities when one follows a dream. A good but undistinguished football player at Westhill when he graduated in 2002, Louis went to Morgan State, grew two inches and put on nearly 100 pounds to become a starting 6-foot-8, 310-pound left tackle.
Louis was signed as a free agent by the Cleveland Browns and has bounced around the training camps and practice squads of three franchises. He is currently on his third stint with the New York Giants, and will head with the team to training camp in Albany next weekend hoping to earn a spot on the roster.
Despite his imposing size, Louis was always a gentle giant, an easygoing and popular member of the Westhill community. While his personality has not changed, his football ability has soared. Though the Giants return their entire offensive line and have a lot of depth at the position, Louis is hoping that if he cannot earn a spot in New York, he will at least attract the attention of another team.
He certainly made an impression with Westhill’s graduating class.
If you want to learn more about Louis’ story, check out my column in Saturday’s edition of The Advocate.
Photo Essay: Justin Nemchek’s Day at Yankee Stadium
As promised, here are some photos of Justin Nemchek’s experience at the Yankees game on Saturday. I’ll have a column in tomorrow’s edition of The Advocate.
Justin sitting at Brian Cashman's desk
Justin sitting in Brian Cashman's box
Justin in the Yankees' indoor batting cage with the bat Derek Jeter gave him.
Justin with Brian Cashman on the field during batting practice.
Justin on the field with the bat he was given by Derek Jeter.
Justin with Reggie Jackson, trying on Jackson's World Series ring.
Justin with Reggie Jackson.
Reggie Jackson signing autographs for (from left) Justin's sister Kelley, Justin and Justin's mother Brenda.
Video: Justin Nemchek’s Day at Yankee Stadium
It is hard to imagine a smile any wider than Justin Nemchek had today, as Yankee Stadium literally turned into his field of dreams.
Thanks to Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, Justin, who suffers from arterio-venous malformation, an abnormal collection of blood vessels near the brain that has left him paralyzed on the left side and causes him seizures, attended today’s game against the Tigers with his family.
Update: Check out lots of photos from Justin’s day in this photo essay post.
Attended might not be the proper word. Nemchek got to:
— Sit in Cashman’s private box.
— Was on the field for batting practice
— Tried on Reggie Jackson’s World Series ring
— Was given a bat by Derek Jeter
— Got to meet the entire team
— Saw his name flashed on the scoreboard
— Had a day he will never forget.
It was a perfect time for Justin, who later this month will undergo invasive surgery that will hopefully cure his seizures.
This came after Cashman, a Darien resident, entertained the Westhill High School softball team last month and had them on the field for the national anthem.
Cashman, another of the local sports dignitaries who does a number of charitable acts that often go unnoticed because he is not seeking attention for his good deeds, read about Justin’s situation in The Advocate and said he wanted to give him “a wonderful experience.”
Cashman easily surpassed his goal.
I will have a column on Justin’s day in Tuesday’s paper and will post some photos after the weekend.
For now, here are three videos of Justin: meeting Reggie Jackson, being introduced to Joe Girardi by Cashman, and with his brother and two sisters getting their pictures taken with A-Rod.
Taylor Zito: Getting Ready for Utah
(Taylor Zito is coming off a stellar sophomore season as the pitcher for Stamford High School’s softball team, leading the Black Knights to a league playoff berth and a win in the state tournament. Zito will be writing about her travel ball experiences this summer.)
By Taylor Zito
This season has been looking good for my summer team. This past weekend at the Slide into Greenwich tournament we won all three games on Saturday.
I usually don’t hit for my high school team but that didn’t stop me this weekend. I had a good hit to the outfield but unfortunately got robbed. And due to my injured wrist, my coach doesn’t want me hitting a lot because we are leaving for a tournament in Utah tomorrow. Therefore I laid down 6 sacrifice bunts to move my teammates into scoring position.
Sad to say our first baseman, Sarah Filmer, broke her fibula while sliding and can no longer go to Utah with my team and I.
I’m very excited for Utah and can’t wait to see what the compitition is like. We are guaranteed five games. When we aren’t playing we will be doing team activities such as white water rafting, horse back riding, alpine sliding and more. This will be a good bonding time for my team, we all get along and I am expecting to have a blast!
Missing an Angle
I guess when you are writing about someone who has so many varied interests and skills, you are bound to miss a good story angle.
That was the case with my profile in today’s paper on Darien’s Sam Stevenson, who is one of the most interesting people I have ever written about and, among many things, will be playing college lacrosse next season at Richmond. To say she has a wide variety of interests is an understatement.
I received an email today from Stevenson’s mother, Jayme, who wrote, “Bet she didn’t mention that she is also a firefighter for the Darien Fire Station.”
She didn’t. It turns out that Stevenson has been a volunteer firefighter since February. She goes through drills every Monday night and is able to do everything except actually fight a fire because she does not have that certification and is not yet 18. She has worked at the scene of several car accidents.
“My best friend did it and loved it and I got into it,” Stevenson said. “It’s awesome because it is something totally different.”
I have the feeling in the future I’m going to discover a lot more about the multi-talented Stevenson, who is going to be a contributing blogger to a new project I’ll be announcing soon. She certainly has a lot of stories to tell.
Video Interview: Peter Stokes
When Bryan Fox stepped down as Trinity Catholic High School’s football coach after last season, athletic director Tracy Nichols did not have to look far for a replacement. Nichols hired Peter Stokes, a former player at the school and a member of Fox’s staff.
The First Down Club, the team’s booster program, held its annual golf outing today, honoring the 25th anniversary of the 1984 team that won the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference title.
I caught up with Stokes tonight at the Italian Center before the post-golf dinner.
Yankees’ Cashman Making Another Dream Come True
Mike Nemchek was picking up a pizza last week when his cell phone rang. The caller on the other end said he was Brian Cashman.
“I thought someone was pulling my leg because it was my personal cell phone,” Nemchek said. “My first question was how Brian Cashman of the New York Yankees could acquire my phone number. As the conversation progressed it hit me this truly was the real deal.”
Little more than two weeks after inviting the Westhill High School softball team, after reading about how its season ended in The Advocate, for a day at Yankee Stadium that included standing on the field for the national anthem, Cashman, the Yankees’ general manager, is going to make a dream come true for Justin Nemchek and his family.
Justin, 13, whose family is well-known in the Stamford sports world, and whose three older siblings all had distinguished high school athletic careers, suffers from arterio-venous malformation, an abnormal collection of blood vessels near the brain that has left him paralyzed on the left side and causes him seizures.
Cashman read about Justin in The Advocate and on Saturday, Justin along with his family will be seeing his favorite team play the Tigers in first-class style. Cashman has invited the Nemcheks to be guests in his personal box. The family will be on the field for batting practice and (this is a secret) Justin and his father will get to go into the Yankees’ clubhouse to meet players.
While Cashman would prefer not to attract publicity for his efforts, it is not unrealistic to think he could run for mayor of Stamford now if he wanted to relinquish his current job.
“The story just really popped, the way Justin loves baseball and loves life,” Cashman said. “I saw the photo of him and saw that he is a huge Yankees fan. I just wanted to get him out here and hopefully give him a wonderful experience. It is simple as that.”
The timing could not be better: Justin will be undergoing invasive surgery next week that hopefully will cure him of the seizures.
“I talked to Mike and I had no idea about the surgery he was facing,” Cashman said. “I hope he will have a great day.”
And how does Justin feel about this?
“He’s always in a good mood, but if it is humanly possible for him to be in a better mood he is,” Mike said. “He has been actively asking me since the season started to go to a game at the new stadium, and Brian Cashman and the Yankees are making that possible.”
