Frederick: Childhood wonderment dies with the Hammer
Hank Aaron, who died Friday, overcame bigotry and furthered civil rights simply by going on in the face of hatred, by quietly overcoming, and by leading through his gentlemanly example and persistence.
Written By:
Chuck Frederick | ×
The call of the play-by-play announcer whispered its way into my bedroom from the living room just down the hall. No way was I asleep, not with my neck craned to hear the family TV, and not with my mind on a ballfield half a country away.
Tonight could be the night, my parents had said. I was 6 and growing up in suburban Milwaukee. Hank Aaron was a mythical figure who sometimes crept his way into their stories. My mom was there the night Hammerin Hank, then a young star for the Milwaukee Braves, hit another home run. We were sitting in left field where the ball came. It went right over us. My dad, who worked for the Milwaukee Transport Co. before becoming a police officer, dro