JOURNAL

JOURNAL ARCHIVE

April 2007

My wife and I joined my daughter's family for a trip to Los Gatos, CA where my son-in-law, Thomas Krug, was being inducted into his high school Hall of Fame. Thomas was an outstanding quarterback in high school earning several honors and eventually a full scholarship to the University of Notre Dame. It was a thrill to see him receive this great award. On our journey to California we made a two day stop in Vegas. I always have a great time taking in the shows and sights of Vegas. We stayed at the beautiful Caesars Hotel and saw Celine Dion perform. She was absolutely incredible - definately one of the BEST shows in Vegas! The dancers, stage setting and of course her amazing voice and songs all make for a show you wished never ended. We also saw my friend, Danny Gans, perform. We have seen Danny at least 6 times now, and each time I am more impressed by him. You have to see the show to believe it - he does over 100 impressions of people, ranging from Jane Fonda, Bill Clinton, Al Pacino to John Mayer. After seeing him, it is clear why he was voted entertainer of the year 10 years in a row in Vegas. It is always a fun night seeing Danny!

Last night, I was thrilled to attend the Tampa Bay Lightning Hockey Playoff game versus New Jersey at the St. Pete Times Forum. The owner of stadium, Ron Campbell, kindly invited my whole family in his box. The place was electric! The Lightning pulled off a 3-2 thriller and now lead 2-1 in the series - GO LIGHTNING!!!!

On April 11th I had the privilege to fly to Appleton, WI to be the guest speaker at a Kraft seminar for over 250 of their sales people from the Pizza Division. When we landed, I could not believe the white snow on the ground - it's April baby!!! But what great people I met in Appleton and those associated with the great brand of Kraft. Tom Moe and Katie Williams helped organize the event and I had so much fun motivating and inspiring the attentive individuals from the DiGiorno sales force. I am lucky and proud to be associated with a product like DiGiorno!

While in WI, I decided to head to Milwaukee on Thursday so that I could take my three grandkids to the Cleveland Indians/LA Angels baseball game that was being played at Miller Park in Milwaukee because of all the snow in Cleveland. Miller Park is truly a beautiful and state of the art baseball stadium.

Bary Swain, Director of Media Relations for the Indians, was kind enough to let my grandkids meet the Indian players in the locker room before the game and even play catch with a few of the players on the field before the game. What a thrill! I also had a blast catching up with one of the best managers in baseball, Mike Scioscia. His son is headed on a full baseball scholarship to Notre Dame this fall and we had lots of fun talking about how special that university is.

 

FINAL FOUR REVIEW:

What a blast I had in Atlanta for the Final Four. It is always a jammed packed few days filled with lots of hoops and excitement. This year was no exception. I arrived in Atlanta on Thursday morning with my entire family (including my five grandkids!). During the trip, I had the pleasure of spending time with some wonderful people and meeting some great fans from Ohio State, UCLA, Florida and Georgetown. Everyone had so much enthusiasm and excitement for their team...that is why March Madness is the greatest sporting event of them all!

During the Final Four, I am privileged to make several appearances for terrific organizations and corporations. This year was non-stop for me, as I talked with executives from GM at a breakfast, spoke at a dinner for The Hartford Group, did a signing for Anaconda Sports and also two for Hooters at two of their local restaurants, held a chalk talk with key executives from DiGiorno and Kraft Foods, did numerous tapings for Sportscenter segments, watched the games and enjoyed Atlanta with my grandkids! By Tuesday morning I was exhausted, but what a special, special weekend!

Here are some pictures from my journey thru Atlanta:

Having a blast with the poeple from The Hartford Group. We had a lot of fun doing a shooting contest!

Conducting a chalk talk with the people from DiGiorno and Kraft Foods!

Enjoying a lunch break at Hooters while also doing a signing for the fans.

Meeting the great fans in Atlanta during a signing at the Anaconda booth in Hoop City.

My buddy, John Stote with The Rock, transported me in style!

Definately a highlight for me was spending time with these amazing youngsters with the Make a Wish Foundation. They are true champions and I certainly wish all of them and their families the best!

The Anaconda party honored my dear friend, Howard Garfinkel, for his countelss contributions to the game of college hoops. I was honored to give his introduction that evening.

What can be more fun than this...

My five grandkids watching the Florida and UCLa bands perform. Having them there with me was the best part of the trip!