School Days in Avalon, Ca.

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Added: Fri Dec 14th 4:06pm
Posted in: Lifelong Learning

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I was asked to write about my early years involving Baseball on Catalina Island and after. All I can say is, it was a great life for any one that grew up there. Once a year, during spring training, the Chicago Cubs would come to the Island for spring training. There is no resemblance to the ball players then and the ones today. They were always approachable to us kids and our families. We came to know them as our real heros, not ones that would turn their back on some kid that idolized them. I never had to pay for an autograph, even from Dizzy Dean, Gabby Hartnett, or Charlie Root, just to name a few(some wood call that name dropping, but I call them my heros). When I was about 10 years old, I became their bat boy during their stay on the Island. No pay, just a lot of fun and learning the art of the game. When I got to High School and the Cubs would come to the Island, they would take our High School team after their work outs and put us at our positions on the field and work with us. Try that today. The player that was assigned to me was, Billy Herman at second base. What a thrill for a 15 year old. Our High School team, remember there was only about 40 or so boys in our High School, was a pretty darned good team. We wood play teams from the mainland that were at least four or five times our size and most of the time we would come out with a win. Believe me, I am not bragging, just darned proud. All the teams would come to the Island to play us, except for one, and that would be our chance to leave the Island and the outside world(like Long Beach and the Piike, where the big roller coaster was). To this day, I am and will always be a Chicago Cub fan. I know things have changed as for as the players and the owner, Wrigley was great, but some day, some how, The Cubs will win the World Seiries and I only hope I am still here to see it. The Cubs of the 30's and 40's will rejoice some where, along with the members of my High School team, who loved them for being real living human beings to us. Hope this has made sense to you all, to me it was the good times. And by the way, there were no million dollar players on drugs to aid their performance(maybe a beer or two here and there).