I’ve been to some pretty good fundraising events, but I was blown away by the organization and response to the Be Perfect Foundation’s second annual dinner this past Saturday at the Hafif Estate in La Verne.
It might be the first time I’ve been to a dinner with 800 people and it still felt intimate. I just added this slide show, so see for yourself.
The astonishing exhibition of support for Hal Hargrave, who founded the Be Perfect Foundation, and for others who have suffered spinal cord injuries is a testament to a great community. But the birth of the foundation and its remarkable progress is because of “Li’l Hal” and his drive and determination. It’s pretty hard not to be impressed with a kid who graduated from high school just two years ago and has had his life turned upside down – only to make the most of his tragic truck accident to try to make the world a better place for others with spinal cord injuries.
He’s making an impact in a big way. I hear Saturday’s event netted an incredible $250,000, matching the funds raised in 2008. The proceeds help purchase wheelchairs, ramps, equipment and therapy sessions at rehabilitation hospitals and facilities such as Casa Colina, the Claremont Club and Project Walk, which are all closely tied with the Be Perfect Foundation and where Hal and others, including locals like Brian Goodwin and Jared Andreason, go for exercise-based therapy.
I’m sure many of the people at the event were there for the social aspects (and they weren’t disappointed), but they had to be inspired by the progress being made toward stem cell treatments for SCI, as explained by Dr. Hans Keirstead from the Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center at UC Irvine. And by the therapy work that Eric Harness described is being done at Project Walk, the internationally recognized spinal cord injury recovery center in Carlsbad. After they delivered their messages, Li’l Hal talked about his experiences and how perceptions about spinal cord injuries are changing daily, both from the perspective of those with the injuries and those who are treating them. He's even adopted the slogan "Changing Perceptions Daily" for his foundation.
Many of the speakers talked about Project Walk, which was special for us, since our son Sid works there as an aid and frequently works with Hal. He says Hal is his favorite patient because he is the hardest worker. It’s truly gratifying to know Sid has the opportunity to be a part of an organization that is making such a difference. I hope he is able to continue to work there through college as he pursues his degree in kinesiology, and to have the good fortune to return to work at a place like that someday. I'm thrilled he wants to.
I’m glad Sid and his brother Sam were able to work the event Saturday, just to gain a greater appreciation for some of the tests and turns that life can take.
It was because of the Hargraves that Sid works at Project Walk, and he loves it. And it is because of the Hargrave family that the Be Perfect Foundation dinner event was again such a success, and why 800 people had a good time on Saturday. Naturally, they showed up to support an important cause, but they also showed up because Hal and Lori and their kids are good people. The entire family should be congratulated, as well as the committee members and other volunteers who made the event happen.
Beth and I went Saturday not knowing who else would be there. But it didn’t take long to see a confluence of friends from so many parts and pieces of our lives. People from different places and phases were around every corner, seemingly somehow intertwined with each other, too. Somewhat magically, they all came together to enjoy themselves and each other, as the LCR Band played deep into the night. My favorite part of the entire evening came as Beth and I rocked out alongside many longtime friends as the band jammed to “Freebird.” As I looked up, I noticed my nephew Kevin on stage singing with friends, and son Sam up front in the middle of the action – us watching him dance while he watched us…
Ah yes, some perceptions do change daily.Here are links to the event preview story in the Claremont Courier and San Bernardino Sun/Inland Valley Daily Bulletin.
It was about this time last year that I decided to try out the idea of blogging. This blog was born as a way of sharing news about family and friends, and to express my opinion about a few things on my mind. It was pretty fun at first, and I built up some momentum.
Then the comments started to come in. That wasn’t bad, but then they started coming from people I don’t know. That was kind of cool – to a point.
But about five months into this thing it hit me. In this world of social networking and personal postings, nothing is private. More than anything, that kind of bothered me. Somebody I barely know came up to me and told me they read my blog and offered an opinion on something I wrote. Then a few other distant acquaintances mentioned they had been reading my commentaries. You’d think that would inspire me to write more. But instead I shut down.
I’m really not interested in sharing with the world everything I’ve done or that I’m doing. You’ll never find me posting my status on Facebook to let you know I’m headed to lunch or that I’m glad it’s Friday. Seriously, who cares? So when I started writing this, I really didn’t have the masses in mind (not that I have a readership that compares to Aston Kutcher’s Twitter following).
But I like to write. Even if I originally intended my target audience to be relatively small, I realize that isn’t how these things work. I get it. So I’ll take another stab at it and see where it goes. I’m not a reporter working for a daily media outlet, so it’s impossible to follow their lead and post daily updates. And I don’t have the time to write long feature stories. Plus, it’s enough trouble to maintain the Claremont Baseball Web site and my fantasy football league site, along with keeping up with my pals on Facebook, Twitter, etc.
I’ve got some material already in the can, but I’m still not sure if I’ll post the already-written 15-part series recalling my college days at our own version of the “Animal House.” While those stories are great memories for all of us who shared those times, we’ve all grown up and aren’t the same guys we were 30 years ago. That series of stories might have to stay in the vault, but I’ll work on new material to keep this blog alive.
Thanks for reading.
On the day I wrote about the competitive virtues of the Baseline League, all four of the league's baseball teams that qualified for the CIF playoffs lost their first-round games. Upland, Alta Loma, Rancho Cucamonga and Los Osos were eliminated from post-season competition on Thursday. Meanwhile, teams from the Sierra League, where Claremont will land in fall 2010, fared better. Chino Hills and Damien both won, while Glendora lost. Charter Oak and South Hills were both scheduled to play their first-round games on Friday.
Claremont High will get a little competitive relief when it moves to the Sierra League beginning in 2010. School principals from 42 schools in the Mt. SAC area have finalized their proposals today (see story), but the final re-alignment won’t be finalized until a vote by league representatives on Oct. 22. There are three proposals on the table, and all put Claremont in the Sierra League with Charter Oak, Chino Hills, Ayala and Damien/St. Lucy's high schools. The only question is whether the sixth team will be Glendora or South Hills. If it is South Hills, then Glendora will move to the Baseline League to replace Claremont. If Glendora stays in the Sierra, then South Hills will be moved to the Miramonte/San Antonio League and the Baseline League will be left with only five schools.
The move is intended to give Claremont some competitive relief from the bigger schools in the Baseline League – especially in football and basketball – as was noted in this blog back in November. But the Wolfpack will still have its hands full in the Sierra League, and there will be more distance to travel. There are probably other local leagues where Claremont would be a better fit, but numerous other issues factor into the equation, making this the logical solution. The next time leagues will have the chance to shift will be 2014, so let’s hope this works.
Happy 50th birthday this past week to my good friends Grant Warhurst (May 14) and Mike Greer (May 16), and this week to Larry Seligman (May 19). And happy 50th wishes to old friend Craig Allen, who celebrated May 4.
We're not getting too old. Some guy just proclaimed 50 the new 18... Okay, maybe that was me, but I'm going with it.
Cheers!
Congratulations to nephew Kevin Bosson, who recently wrapped up his freshman season as a pitcher for the Cal Poly Pomona baseball team. Kevin emerged as one of the top starters for the Broncos, and led the team with four victories, 59 1/3 innings pitched and 46 strikeouts. He posted a 4-5 record with a 4.55 earned run average in 11 starts.
Unfortunately, the Cal Poly folks didn’t seem to go to bat for Kevin when it came to post-season honors. He was surprisingly passed over as the California Collegiate Athletic Association’s Freshman of the Year, which went to Cal State San Bernardino’s Aaron Brooks. Kevin put up better numbers in every significant statistical category (Brooks had a 2-3 record, 4.70 ERA, 48 strikeouts in nine starts and 53 innings).
Maybe this one should have gone as a no-decision.
For those of you who've followed my blog, you may have noticed some of the artwork that I've chosen to include with my writings. Most of these were pieces portraying the Olympics or football and were done by artist Ernie Barnes.
Barnes died this week at the age of 70. A former professional football player, Barnes gained my attention with the paintings he commissioned for the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. Beth bought the set of five posters for me, and they still hang in my house. He was unquestionably my favorite sports artist.
The things that most captivated me about his art were his portrayal of athletic bodies and determination. I remember hearing that his characters always had their eyes closed, too. That is mentioned in the obituary from the April 30 Los Angeles Times.
The Times also provide a link to a photo gallery of Barnes and some of his work.
I’ve been to some pretty good fundraising events, but I was blown away by the organization and response to the Be Perfect Foundation’s second annual dinner this past Saturday at the Hafif Estate in La Verne.
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