Ron Santo’s wife, Vicki, said she would have much preferred her husband give his Baseball Hall of Fame induction speech Sunday.
“Rest assured that he’s laughing at my expense to see me squirm a little bit,” she said.
She said words could not express her sorrow that Santo didn’t live to see his enshrinement.
Vicki filled in for the late Cubs third baseman with grace and took the spotlight. Her speech may have been the most inspirational of all. Those in attendance probably learned more about Santo as a person than if he had given the speech himself.
She described a guy who hid his diabetes from teammates for 10 years, a guy who nearly passed a teammate on the basepaths after hitting a grand slam because his sugar was low and he needed to get back into the dugout to eat a candy bar, a guy who told a nurse that his second leg amputation, in 2002, came at a perfect time because he’d be ready in time to return to the Cubs’ broadcast booth, and a guy who continued to broadcast games over the final 10 years of his life despite many challenges. We learned about the years of his struggles with diabetes, and how he raised $65 million for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
“Ron’s life was never about lows,” Vicki said. “He always found a way to make it about highs.”
Her stories were compelling and emotional. Yet, she seemed compelled and unshaken. But Barry Larkin was the one shedding tears.
“This is not a sad day, not at all,” she said. This is a very happy day. It’s an incredible day for an incredible man, a man who lived an extraordinary life to its fullest. Indeed, he had a wonderful life. From the humble beginnings of Garlic Gulch to the Baseball Hall of Fame. It was a spectacular journey fraught with trials and tribulations and incredible lows and highs.”
According to Vicki, Santo’s ability to play baseball was a God given gift. She said playing the game was easy for him, and that it was only the diabetes that made the game hard. “Looking back, he believed he was given the gift of talent as well as the challenge of diabetes so that through his hardship, he could shed light on a cause that he could help others through his story,” Vicki said.
“Santo believed it’s not what happens to you in life that people may judge, but how you handle what happens to you in your life,” Vicki said later in her speech.
Thanks to Vicki, thousands of people, if not more, now know about the life and heroic journey of the 2012 Hall of Famer.
Our Opinion
July 26, 2012
Widow delivers in speech
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- Congratulations to Lucy Ford for winning a state title Cooperstown's Lucy Ford needed a personal best to win a state title in the high jump Saturday at the New York State Track and Field Championships in Middletown. Ford, a junior, didn't just get her personal best with her jump of 5-feet, 5-inches. She broke her own school record, again, and became the first CCS girl to win a state title in track and field.
- Mother Nature throws Hall a curveball A couple of weeks ago when we wrote that we hoped the date change for the National Baseball Hall of Fame's annual seven-inning exhibition game would be a hit we were not expecting Mother Nature to force an alternative plan all together. Now there is no way to know if the Memorial Day Weekend would have been a better suit as we cannot compare apples to oranges.
- Roses Roses to those who participated and contributed to this year's Cooperstown/Otsego County Relay for Life.
- Hopefully HOF Classic date change is a hit The National Baseball Hall of Fame’s annual seven-inning exhibition game has seen a drop in attendance in the last couple of year. The Hall of Fame Classic began as a Father’s Day event, was then moved to the Saturday before the holiday, and is now being held on Memorial Day Weekend.
- Congratulations Cooperstown softball It is hard to believe that Cooperstown's softball team had never won a division or playoff title until this week.
- Happy CYB has found a home Cooperstown Youth Baseball has finally found a home. However, it is a bit sad it could not be in the village that is often referred to as the "home of baseball."
- Change is never taken lightly We are glad the Cooperstown Central School Board finally chose a nickname, but were surprised by the plummeting attendance rate at meetings pertaining to the matter. What seemed to be a hot-button issue attracting nearly 100 people for and against a name change at initial meetings seemed to simmer to complete no shows toward the end.
- Tax cap is deceiving As if figuring out one's tax bill isn't mind boggling enough. In its second year of implantation, the 2 percent limit on property tax increases makes things all that more complicated. One cannot just assume his or her individual taxes will not increase more than the cap threshold.
- Earth Festival is a good start to spring We hope Mother Nature brings us some sunshine and spring weather this weekend. But if not, there is a predominantly inside event coming up that should help get visitors thinking about spring.
- Education heading in wrong direction It is good to see that with teachers changing their curriculums to teach for the Common Core State Standards that there is still some hands-on learning going on locally.
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