[nfbwatlk] Fw: Making a mark

[Albert Sanchez]

Read and enjoy, A.S.
----- Original Message ----- 
Sent: Sunday, October 26, 2008 4:58 PM
Subject: Making a mark


>
>
> Making a mark
>
> Sunday, October 26, 2008 12:39 AM EDT
>
> PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Ask Jamie Moyer about Camp Erin and he loses it.
>
> He gets teary and chokes up while talking about the bereavement camps he
> helped start for children who have lost loved ones.
>
> Then listen to the kids themselves. It's easy to understand why the
> Philadelphia pitcher becomes so emotional.
>
> Matthew Leist and his younger sister, Tristana, are among the thousands 
> who
> have benefited from the network of 18 camps around the country set up by 
> Moyer
> and his wife, Karen.
>
>
> On July 4, 2003, the Leists lost their mother, Victoria, to cancer.
>
> "After my mom died, I kind of went into a blank mode. Nothing else really
> mattered anymore," said Matthew, who was 9 at the time. "When I went to 
> Camp
> Erin and I got a chance to meet other kids who can relate, it was amazing.
> It's like I was in this darkness and Camp Erin lit everything up."
>
> Matthew, who lives near Seattle, celebrates his 15th birthday Saturday - 
> the
> same night the 45-year-old Moyer was set to make his long-awaited debut in
> the World Series, starting against Tampa Bay in Game 3.
>
> Leist knew exactly what to wish for.
>
> "The Moyers have helped us out so much and they're such nice people that 
> the
> best present for me would be for him to win that game and have him and his
> family celebrate," Matthew said.
>
> Tristana called the experience at Camp Erin "practically indescribable."
>
> "It opened my eyes and let me know I'm not the only person who lost a 
> loved
> one," the 11-year-old said.
>
> The camps were named for Erin Metcalf, a teenager the Moyers met through 
> the
> Make-A-Wish Foundation in 1998 while Jamie played for the Seattle 
> Mariners.
>
> They spent a lot of time with the 15-year-old girl who had developed liver
> cancer before she died in 2000. Two years later, the first Camp Erin in 
> 2002
> in Washington state.
>
> "Erin loved to help other kids," Karen Moyer said. "She's a special, 
> special
> teenager who lost her life. We wanted to honor her memory. It's really
> empowering
> for the children to be around others who have gone through the same
> experience. Something magical always seems to happen at the camps and we 
> truly
> feel
> Erin's presence in every camp."
>
> Children and teens participate in traditional camp activities, meet with 
> grief
> counselors and interact with peers experiencing similar sorrow at the 
> weekend
> gatherings.
>
> Matthew recalled canoeing and rock climbing, but one particular art 
> activity
> stood out most. The children made stars out of Styrofoam to represent 
> their
> loved one. They took the stars out to a lake, lit them and sat there
> reflecting on their loss.
>
> "Of all the stars, mine and Tristana's were the only ones that stuck
> together," Matthew said. "We felt like that was our mom reaching out and
> touching
> us. It made us feel better."
>
> Moyer spoke to waves of reporters for more than 20 minutes before the 
> Phillies
> played the Rays in Game 2, answering questions mostly dealing with 
> baseball.
>
> Unflappable on the mound, he got a little wobbly talking about his first 
> trip
> to the Series, and how much it meant to make it with the team he grew up
> rooting for in nearby Souderton, Pa.
>
> Still, it was nothing like how he gets when the subject is Camp Erin.
>
> "When you see the impact it can make on kids who haven't asked for what 
> has
> happened in their life, knowing there is a support group out there that 
> can
> help educate them and let them know that life will go on and they can 
> remember
> their loved one in a positive way, it really makes it all worthwhile," 
> Moyer
> said.
>
> Camp Erin is the largest network of bereavement camps in the country for
> children.
>
> There are in 12 states and a camp opened in Philadelphia last year and 
> another
> started up in Tampa Bay this summer. The Moyers hope to eventually have
> one in each major league city and plan to expand to 12 new cities in 2009.
>
> "Jamie has had a long journey in baseball and he's committed to every
> community he played in," Karen Moyer said. "Camp Erin means a lot to the 
> both
> of
> us. There are so many children that grieve the loss of a loved one. It's a
> huge issue and it needs to be addressed."
>
> Moyer won baseball's Roberto Clemente Award in 2003 given to a player who
> combines excellence on the field with community service. It's one of 
> several
> honors he's received that recognize his work off the field.
>
> Moyer turns 46 next month and would become the oldest pitcher to win a
> postseason game if he beats Tampa Bay.
>
> "This is a great game and a great opportunity, but win or lose, life goes 
> on,"
> Moyer said. "When children have to deal with losing a loved one and they
> don't know where to go and how to handle it, it's proven that if they 
> don't
> get the right guidance, they fall between the cracks.
>
> "So, in our small way, helping to turn this into something big, we're 
> trying
> to prevent kids from falling between those cracks and helping them grow 
> and
> learn and maybe as they grow up, they'll help someone else."
>
>
>
>
>