Who Are You? Have You Seen My Husband.

First off, Have You Kind Folks seen
Bear ? Would you please give
him a message. Phone Home.

I gave him a new IBM for Christmas,
and he needs to get home everyso
often so he can finish his house chores.
He 'promised' me a back (or front)
porch for this house, and said
it would be in before July 1.....but
that was 15 years ago.

Hi, I am Karan & at 29ish, 1/2 Irish
and the 'pretty bride' of my husband,
Tom. Tom is also 1/2 Scottish, is
58, has more energy that what's deserved, and enjoys baseball anywhere, anytime, anyplace, and it's not fair that
I have more grey hair on my Irish
black hair than he does on his Scottish
reddish brown hair.

Our honeymoon was at a National Tournament near Niagara Falls in upstate NY. Two kids both in High School Patty Ann & KC. We have been happily married a long time....for 28 years, (Tom forgot one year !) & in those years maintained and adjusted thoughout all the good times and cloudy days.

We have lived in this fine ol; house for 16 years, having moved from California,
with travels to Hawaii,Virginia, Florida,
Colorado and others. We both followed the baseball seasons, the aerospace industry, and the computer industry.

I too am an educator, and have been for almost 30 years. In 1999 I now teach the 2nd graders after almost 12 years with the 5th graders.

We travelled with a pair of labrador retrievers for many years. They were
baseball smart, took infield / outfield
with the club, the sat in the dugout
& watched the games being played the whole time. When the last of the two
died on the way to a National Tourney
in Wisconson, we were dogless until Tom brought home a mini-dauschand following All-Saints Day in 1998.

Memories include:

a) Seeing the surf and seals, eating smoke d salmon in Monterey California
(while in the stands watching a ball game)

b) Drinking Dom Perignon from paper
cups with friends (on the American River)
(after a ball game in Stockton Ca)

c) Taking my 6 day new girl to Candlestick so that Hondo & Tom could watch
a game (& Hondo see the baby.)

d) Helping Tom make computer while
sitting on the porch of Jim Santanns
in Twaine Hart (in the Ca Mtn) & hearing
about Vida Blue and how hard he
throws, and then having him walk
onto the porch to chat.

e) Getting nervous when Tom wakes
up to go out to drag another field
(at 3:00 am ) after the present
he gave me on Valentines Day 1998
(he had a heart attack !)

f) I can also recall how Tom gave me this line when we first met, which I almost did not fall for, & I think we are about even ever since then.

g) Charting pitches where it became cute how the pitch and location got relayed to me, while I was sitting in the stands.

h) The stories from when my father & Rex Barney & Tom Thomas & the rest of the old timers would get together.

Just the other day, another friend of ours passed. It was the wife of one of Tom's youth coaches. I can recall Tom living in her house just to help out.

I, like Tom get so sad at seeing all the old friends at funerals now rather than weddings.

From all the places we
have been, Nor Cal & Maryland
have the great weather (next to San
Diego), Florida & Ariz have the nicest
ballparks (& restrooms), but Baltimore
and Easton, MD have such a
baseball tradition and history, it's
just real nice.

As a kid, I grew up around Memorial Stadium. During the hot and humid Baltimore summers,my Dad, Ray Flanigan & I would cool off on the front porch for the evening while listening to the ball game on the radio and looking at the bright lights shining from 33rd Street. It kind of gave a real sense of almost being at the ball park. In the late 1960's, and when able to obtain passes from former Orioles manager, Tommy Thomas, I sat with my Dad in the bleacher seats and continued learning about the game. According to Ray and Tommy, I attended almost every home game from 1967-1969. You see, Ray Flanigan's fastball enabled Tommy Thomas to draft Ray into the pros while Ray was still in high school. While in high school, Ray successfully dominated the International League while playing for the Baltimore Orioles in the early 40's. Of course Flanigan enlisted in WWII, and following the war, briefly pitched with the Cleveland Indians and Bob Feller. Like most great pitchers who served WWII, a very promising and outstanding baseball career ended when returning home.

Tom had the unique opportunity to learn about baseball from some good baseball people and programs such as Fred Baxter, Ted Williams, Walter Johnson High School, Edsel Martz, the UofMaryland, Charlie Lau, John Baxter, Kelly Kulina and notable Fastpitch folks and programs such as the Clearwater Bombers, Mr. Sullivan, Dick Hardman, Kitty Hawk and Tim O'Connor, Potomac Drillers and "Doc" Debenedictus, the scouts with the Mid Atlantic Baseball Scouting Association and many others.He was as a neighbor of the Baxter family, & was a ball boy for the Senators, for Fred Baxter a long time general equipment manager for many years with the Senators and briefly the Texas Rangers. Tom remembers listening, watching and learning as Mr. Williams and Hondo would discuss baseball and of course hitting. In fact, in the clubhouse, or on the field that is all anyone ever talked about. Tom also played at UofMaryland.
In another one of his travels, I remember driving all-night just to be able to get the opportunity to play at the new Kansas City Baseball Training Academy in Sarasota Florida. Tom got so said again when
Charlie Lau suddenly passed.

Today, I am President of the
Silver Spring Christian Sports Association. And Yes, there are politics everywhere.

We have also owned a sporting good business called Silver Spring Sports.
And there are good people in that
business too, and some not so good.
For a while there, all we met was the
ones we did not want

When the aerospace industry went sour,
Tom began scouting professionally,
and believe me, the scouts today
do not get the bucks nor the recognition
they deserve. And yes, they help
all baseball players, the good ones,
the better oness, the prospects,
the non prospects, the young ones.
just everybody....because it's what they do.

Tom has been know to sponsor, manage, coach and support youth baseball and softball programs, both in the USA
and abroad. Tom directs winter Baseball Camps at Forcey Christian (Elementary) School and the High School,
Coaches Travel Baseball, Summer Programs, supports girls Fastpitch softball clinics at Catholic University, serves on the Board of Directors for the now defunk International Fall Baseball League (IFBL), is Tournament Director for the Bear Fall Classic, a Maryland Showcase for Our National Pastime, scouted professionally for the Toronto Blue Jays and Florida Marlins, coached HS Baseball at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School & enjoys his time at the UofM. Tom was just
identified as a nominee again for the Washington DC Metro Hall of Fame.
I think if he gets in....all should come
to the dinner party.

Have a Great Day
Karan

Their are and will be many more coaches and good people to learn baseball from, but lest not forget what we did, and whom we did it with to get us here. May God Bless Fred Baxter, and Thank-you for the many more times that Baltimore and baseball will remember you Ray Flanigan, Wally Farnes, Joe Branzell, and Dick Hardman, who went to heaven before the New Year.