So last night my dad was honored at the Latin American Heritage Foundation Gala. The evening began with a trio playing Latin American music and my dad mingling with and signing autographs for the guests who had arrived. Dinner started with a salad covered with strawberries and strawberry vinagarette dressing followed by pork (which I don't eat but I did anyway) covered in cooked apples. Dessert was strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate mousse. So far, so good. No big deal. Nothing I hadn't seen before.
Side note - A funny moment occurred before dinner when I went to order a Corona at the bar. They didn't have any! I said "what?!? This is the Latin American Heritage Foundation Gala and you don't have Corona? Do you have Tequilla?" So I guess the bartender told the powers that be that "Tony Oliva's grandson wants Corona and since this is a Latin American deal we better get it!" Well, I'm not his grandson - I'm his son, but within 20 minutes I had a cold Corona with a lime at my table. I guess there are perks to this role. Anyway, back to my story.
What happened after dinner was more of the same. Slide shows and videos that I had seen a hundred times before, but what happened next was completely different. See, I've heard my dad be introduced to audiences before, and they talk about what a great baseball player he was and how he's so good for the community and blah blah blah, but the promoter of this event went up to the mic and said "I'm not going to talk about Tony Oliva tonight. I'm going to let YOU talk about Tony Oliva tonight. I'm going to walk around this audience and if you have a story to share please do so. That's when I realized that these people were here because of my dad. Not just because their company they worked for bought them a ticket, or because they wanted a reason to go out, but to show their love and support of him. One man who seemed to be in his early twenties got up and said "you know, I've only met Tony twice in my life, and I've probably talked to him for a half an hour, and he makes me feel like I could talk to him all night if I wanted to. He isn't so untouchable like a lot of the other professional athletes around." And young woman from US Bank stood up and said she was inspired by his story. She was from South America and was going through what he went through when he first came to America. She didn't have any friends or family here, she came for opportunity, and he made her feel like she could succeed too. And the stories kept coming.
The final part of the night was what really surprised me. You know when you go to a concert and you see your favorite band and they somehow look larger than life? I've seen Prince in concert a couple of times, and he really isn't very tall, but his personality is huge. I was at the MOA one time and Black Sabbath was walking through, and they just had this air about them that they were somebody special. Last night was the first time that ever happened for me with my dad. When he walked up to the podium in his best suit and tie, he just seemed to tower over the room. It was the first time I had ever seen him as a celebrity. He was one of those people that you knew was important just by how they carried themself. His message was simple and clear. "People think I'm crazy because I talk to everybody. I talk to girls, I talk to boys, I talk to old ladies, I talk to little kids, I even talk to dogs. One of my best friends in Cuba was a cow! When you go to work you have to choose your attitude. Sometimes it's hard to go to work and be positive but it doesn't cost you anything to say 'hi' to someone and make them happy. My biggest inspiration is my parents. I had 9 brothers and sisters and I watched how hard they would work to make sure we had food, and clothing, and a place to live. And they did it by working together. If we all work together we can succeed. If you have kids, tell them to go to school, and do something! I love Cuba, but this is the greatest country in the world because of the opportunities that are here and they've opened their doors for us. Go out and be somebody."
It was all the same inspirational speaker talk I had heard before, but for the people in the room they were hearing it from a legend, an icon, their hero. My hero. And I know that it touched their hearts and this experience will stay with them forever. I know it will with me.
Side note - A funny moment occurred before dinner when I went to order a Corona at the bar. They didn't have any! I said "what?!? This is the Latin American Heritage Foundation Gala and you don't have Corona? Do you have Tequilla?" So I guess the bartender told the powers that be that "Tony Oliva's grandson wants Corona and since this is a Latin American deal we better get it!" Well, I'm not his grandson - I'm his son, but within 20 minutes I had a cold Corona with a lime at my table. I guess there are perks to this role. Anyway, back to my story.
What happened after dinner was more of the same. Slide shows and videos that I had seen a hundred times before, but what happened next was completely different. See, I've heard my dad be introduced to audiences before, and they talk about what a great baseball player he was and how he's so good for the community and blah blah blah, but the promoter of this event went up to the mic and said "I'm not going to talk about Tony Oliva tonight. I'm going to let YOU talk about Tony Oliva tonight. I'm going to walk around this audience and if you have a story to share please do so. That's when I realized that these people were here because of my dad. Not just because their company they worked for bought them a ticket, or because they wanted a reason to go out, but to show their love and support of him. One man who seemed to be in his early twenties got up and said "you know, I've only met Tony twice in my life, and I've probably talked to him for a half an hour, and he makes me feel like I could talk to him all night if I wanted to. He isn't so untouchable like a lot of the other professional athletes around." And young woman from US Bank stood up and said she was inspired by his story. She was from South America and was going through what he went through when he first came to America. She didn't have any friends or family here, she came for opportunity, and he made her feel like she could succeed too. And the stories kept coming.
The final part of the night was what really surprised me. You know when you go to a concert and you see your favorite band and they somehow look larger than life? I've seen Prince in concert a couple of times, and he really isn't very tall, but his personality is huge. I was at the MOA one time and Black Sabbath was walking through, and they just had this air about them that they were somebody special. Last night was the first time that ever happened for me with my dad. When he walked up to the podium in his best suit and tie, he just seemed to tower over the room. It was the first time I had ever seen him as a celebrity. He was one of those people that you knew was important just by how they carried themself. His message was simple and clear. "People think I'm crazy because I talk to everybody. I talk to girls, I talk to boys, I talk to old ladies, I talk to little kids, I even talk to dogs. One of my best friends in Cuba was a cow! When you go to work you have to choose your attitude. Sometimes it's hard to go to work and be positive but it doesn't cost you anything to say 'hi' to someone and make them happy. My biggest inspiration is my parents. I had 9 brothers and sisters and I watched how hard they would work to make sure we had food, and clothing, and a place to live. And they did it by working together. If we all work together we can succeed. If you have kids, tell them to go to school, and do something! I love Cuba, but this is the greatest country in the world because of the opportunities that are here and they've opened their doors for us. Go out and be somebody."
It was all the same inspirational speaker talk I had heard before, but for the people in the room they were hearing it from a legend, an icon, their hero. My hero. And I know that it touched their hearts and this experience will stay with them forever. I know it will with me.