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Salem, Beverly promote sportsmanship By MATT JENKINS News staff BEVERLY -- On Thursday morning loads of local high school football fans will flock to Hurd Stadium to see Beverly and Salem play for the 102nd time on Thanksgiving. But last night the two teams and many of their fans gathered at Vittori-Rocci Post to put everything in perspective. The Salem-Beverly Fellowship Dinner, which is held in memory of Jason Aucone and Stephen O'Grady, is not about one of the state's most storied rivalries. It's a celebration of competition, respect, understanding and, most importantly, life. "You hope it puts everything into perspective for the kids," said Beth O'Grady, Stephen's older sister. "It's all about the team and playing together. Hopefully it hits home." The dinner was first organized last year by the school superintendents and it seemed only natural for Aucone and O'Grady to be linked to the event. Aucone and O'Grady were both taken away from their respective communities much too soon in automobile accidents. Aucone was elected as a Beverly football captain, but never got to play in his senior season, while O'Grady, who was affiliated with Salem Little League for many years, was a positive role model and coach for most of Salem's youth. "The idea was for the two communities to get together as teams and celebrate the whole concept of competing, but still respecting one another," said Salem Athletics Director Bob Geswell. "It's understood that Salem is going to play as hard as it can and so is Beverly. It's about the game. It's not about other things. It's about playing hard, playing fair, having some pride in your performance and having respect for the other community." It is those very principles that both Aucone and O'Grady stood for and the idea is to relay those messages to the kids before they take the field. "I think the concept is wonderful," said Tom Aucone, Jason's father. "Obviously for us, to have my son's name associated with this type of event is just more of an honor to his memory. And to have it tied to the O'Grady family's name from Salem is wonderful. I know what Stephen meant to that community. It's just a tribute and we're very grateful and thankful to the staffs from both the Beverly side and from the Salem side for putting this type of thing together." For both the Aucone and O'Grady families, the holidays are a very tough time. The Fellowship Dinner is a great honor for both, but there are some mixed emotions. "It's a great honor to our family to have this associated with Stephen's name," said O'Grady. "It's a hard feeling to explain. When you lose a family member it's tough when the holiday comes. This sort of feels like our way to keep the tradition alive and we have new ways to remember him." Having O'Grady's name associated with a combined Salem and Beverly event is ideal. Besides being one of the most recognizable faces at the Little League field at Forest River Park, O'Grady was also known among Beverly kids because of his days as a teacher at St. John's of Beverly. "In a way Stephen is half Salem and half Beverly," said O'Grady. "He always had two groups of friends because of St. John's of Beverly, so the whole Salem-Beverly connection is perfect. It's a great tribute to him on both sides of the bridge." Aside from some traffic on Route 128 that held up the Salem buses, the night was a complete success. The guest speaker for the event was former New England Patriots center Pete Brock and his speech went right along with the mood of the evening. Brock focused on the game in terms of playing as a team and there was a lot of talk about role models. Coaches, parents, teachers and others hope all of the Salem and Beverly football players will take something from the evening and play the game with great enthusiasm while still showing respect for the other team. "It's a great rivalry. It's a moment of history for these kids," said Aucone. "Not many communities can say they have such a long standing tradition like this going on. It's fantastic." If the kids did take anything from the gathering and tomorrow's game is played with the usual intensity and enthusiasm, then the rivalry will only continue to grow. Everybody hopes the players can recognize what it's all about before it's over. "High school is a great time," said O'Grady. "I
hope they really do appreciate the moment for what it is."  |
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