VIEW GALLERY | Red Sox Alumni, Guests Extend Jackie Robinson Legacy to CMS Students at 23rd Annual Celebration of Life
The Salem News | Breaking Barriers: Red Sox alumni visit Collins Middle School for annual Jackie Robinson Celebration of Life
The theme at Friday’s 23rd Annual Jackie Robinson Celebration of Life at the Collins Middle School was clear, yet open-ended.
‘Without Jackie Robinson’s legacy, I could never have…’
A panel of guests including Boston Red Sox alumni Sam Horn (1987-89), Darnell McDonald (2010-12) and Manny Delcarmen (2005-10), Red Sox and Boston Celtics DJ Kahleil Blair, Vice President of the Jackie Robinson Foundation Ivo Philbert and NESN reporter Jahmai Webster visited Collins Middle School to discuss the personal impact Mr. Robinson’s legacy had, and continues to have, on them.
And to pass that legacy on to the seventh and eighth grade students.
Each guest spoke of persevering through struggle, such as toiling in minor league baseball for years — in Mr. McDonald’s case, 10 years — before breaking into MLB. Mr. Blair, a graduate of Boston College, said he’d never have been able to afford such a school without receiving the Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholarship.
- The lessons they imparted were clear and heard:
- Surround yourself with good people.
- Think positive. Act positive. Be positive, and positive things will happen
- Listen to your parents and teachers.
- What is your pregame? With the right pregame, anything is possible.
The event closed with the reading of the Dick Flavin poem titled ‘Jackie Robinson’ by eighth grader Jose Toribo Francisco. Afterward, students were introduced to Red Sox mascots Wally and Tessie, and took photos of two of the Sox World Series trophies.
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