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Smitty

When I think of Smitty, two words come to mind: decency and baseball. Jeremy and my sons, Scott and John, played baseball for the FOE in the Somerset Little League as well as on several all star teams and, eventually for the Stoystown Legion team. Ed and I spent countless hours teaching them the fundamentals of the game at Grand Slam in Geistown every Saturday over many years. I should say, Ed taught them the game. His knowledge of the game far exceeded mine. I will always treasure those days as we bonded as fathers and sons in a special way. I always thought Ed should have been a regular season coach. He loved and knew how to play the game (one only has to look at his 1967 Somerset County Legion season to know that), but Ed would not push himself into that role as other fathers jostled to position themselves to promote their own sons. He loved to work with ALL kids, not just his own or those of his friends, to teach them how to become better players. He was a refreshing exception in the age of promoting one’s own son first; he promoted everyone’s sons. Ed set a quiet example of decency and composure. He was kind, understanding and patient and served as an excellent role model. I saw this best demonstrated when he and I coached a few of the boys’ all star teams. I could always count on Ed to set a tone of respect for the game and respect for one’s teammates. Ed was a quiet and unassuming man and most importantly one of the most decent men I have ever known. I hope someday, when we meet again, I’ll hear Smitty call out, “Hey Rick, let’s play two!”

Posted by Rick Whipkey
Tuesday July 8, 2014 at 5:56 pm
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