JOURNAL

JOURNAL ARCHIVE

Oct. 13, 2007

I was back at Notre Dame this past weekend to cheer on my Irish versus Boston College.  As we all know, the Irish just could not pull this one out.  Nonetheless, I had a blast with my wife Lorraine, our friends, Bobby and Beverly Neville, and my buddy. John Moran and his son, Johnny.  We enjoyed walking around campus in the cooler fall weather as the leaves are changing all over campus. 

The campus was spectacular.  One of the things that I love best about a football weekend at Notre Dame is the pep rallies that take place on Friday night before the game.  They are always full of excitement and enthusiasm and this pep rally was no different despite having such a tough season.  Raghib “The Rocket” Ishmail returned to his alma mater to light up the crowd and entertain the audience. 

He inspired the students to believe and to never give up.  He did a phenomenal job.  Also, part of the Notre Dame / Boston College weekend was the Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court and former Minnesota Vikings Player (and Notre Dame graduate), Alan Page.  It was a fabulous two day trip and we all had a great time filled with college football.

 

Oct.6, 2007

I had a very memorable night over this past weekend as I had the opportunity to raise funds and be a part of a special evening with the Tampa Bay Lightning and the V Foundation.  The Tampa Bay Lightning took on the Atlanta Thrashers on Saturday evening at the St. Pete Times Forum and I was able to attend the game as the guest of Head Coach, John Tortorella and his lovely wife, Christine. I was joined by my wife, my two daughters, their husbands and my five grandkids.  The evening was kicked off with a pre-game reception at the Marriott Waterside aiming to raise awareness and funds for a pediatric cancer research grant for the V Foundation.  My goal is to raise one million dollars in the name of Payton Wright, a remarkable, five-year-old little girl in my area who lost her battle to cancer in May 2007.  John Tortorella has joined me in this battle and asked me to speak to a group at the Marriot before the game to help bring awareness to this special effort.  While at the reception, I met a very special family, the Sims, whose 11 year old daughter, Sydney is faced with a rare form of cancer called neuoroblastoma. 

Sydney and her family are truly courageous people.  Recently, Sydney’s father, Kevin, rode his bike with six other fathers of children who are faced with cancer on a multi-day journey.  They rode their bikes from Sacramento, California to Washington, D.C. in an effort to raise funds to help fight pediatric cancer.  It would be my hope that the money we raise could be a part of a research grant that might find a cure or benefit special kids like Sydney.

My whole family had a blast as we proudly wore our Tampa Bay Lightning jerseys, each personalized with our names on the back.  Before the game I had a great time as I went on the ice with my five grandkids and announced, “Hey Tampa Bay, Let’s Play Hockey!”

The entire Tampa Bay Lightning organization is first class all the way and everyone in the Community Relations and Public Relations Departments took care of every detail of our visit.  I can also tell you that John and Christine Tortorella are real, genuine and caring individuals and it was a privilege to be a part of the Lightning’s win over the Thrashers on Saturday.

For more pictures from the Lightning game, CLICK HERE