Congratulations to Andrew Meeusen for winning the 2011 Father’s Day Contest and for all those that participated!
“My father, Jim Meeusen, is a very hard-working man who has done a lot for me over my 25
years on this planet. My Dad is a construction estimator who puts in 40 hours a week and still finds time on the weekends
to work on our house, take us out to the movies, and sets us up on a nice vacation once a year, despite the economy.
Our
baseball traditions go back to when I was a very little kid. One of the earliest memories I have is of being with him at a
Spring Training game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium to watch the Oakland Athletics with some family friends. I must have been
only about five years old, but I can still remember cheering on Rickey Henderson from the left field bleachers (and of him
missing a fly ball in the sun right in front of us). From then on, we used to go to a couple Spring Training games a year...When
the Arizona Diamondbacks franchise got set up in 1998, we started going to a couple of those games a year.
As
one small way to pay him back, nine years ago, when I first got a job, I started the tradition of taking Dad to the Father's
Day game at Chase Field to watch the Arizona Diamondbacks (although it was usually a game near Father's Day because they are
usually out of town on Father's Day). Back then, I'd buy the cheap tickets and a couple hot dogs and drinks for us, and we'd
sit in the nosebleed sections and chat throughout the game. It really transformed into one of the few times each year when
he and I really just get to spend some quality time together, especially since 2007 because he works very hard at his job
because of the economy, and I am becoming a busier person just starting out in the workforce and going to school for my Master's
degree. We saw some fantastic games together, like Randy Johnson's great 5-1 win over the Boston Red Sox (June 10, 2007),
the only time they ever came to Chase Field in 2007.
This year, I have been fortunate to be able
to get Dad and I some great seats right behind the Diamondbacks dugout. We're also taking my good friend Scott and his father,
David, whose family was a second home to me from high school to present. Dad and I have never sat so close to the action before,
and I imagine that this game between the White Sox and D-backs will end up being one of our best baseball memories yet, especially
because this time the game is actually on Father's Day.”
