NEWS STORIES/ESSAYS

Footprints
by Hugh Galligan

The telephone rang and my heart began to pound. Filled with both anxiety and excitement, I wondered "Could this be the call?" The voice on the other end of the telephone was just what I wanted to hear. "Hughbie! You are the future of the Salem Little League Reds," exclaimed the deep voice in an equally excited manner. "Hughbie" was the nickname that he had given me in a previous meeting with some current members of the "Reds". The man on the other end of the telephone was Stephen O'Grady, the man who would be my next baseball coach in Salem Little League. Not only would he be my coach, but he also would be the one person that everyone meets in his or her life who leaves an everlasting impression on that person.

The first day I met him, he pulled a prank on me that I will never forget. I remember anticipating what was to be my first encounter with Steve. We traveled to a rather distant restaurant, but the time passed quickly because of the constant jokes Steve told my friends and I. At the restaurant, Steve ordered a large appetizer, which included a disgustingly huge portion of guacamole. Because I had never seen anything like this before, he convinced me to eat an enormous spoonful of unbearable guacamole because he insisted it really did "taste like eggs". A severe case of "the giggles", as well as the horrendous taste forced me to sprint to the bathroom. From that moment on, I knew that his sense of humor and an ability to relate to children, especially me, would affect my life in some way. Stephen's ability to be humorous, light-hearted, and unpredictable all the same time fascinated me.

Over the following three years, we became a championship ball club, winning the Salem National Little League Championship each year, and winning the City Championship once. But my most memorable experiences with Steve rarely revolved around baseball; instead, my memories are rooted in friendship. Each year at the conclusion of the season, our "Reds" took a camping trip that lasted four days, but was filled with enough activities for a lifetime. We took trips to the enormous waterslide parks in New Hampshire, swam in the Kancamagus River, and passed the time telling spine-tingling ghost stories. It was amazing that a grown man could like the same exact things as a twelve-year-old. One night on each vacation trip was reserved for the infamous "spirit walk", a walk through the woods in which the members of the team would have to survivwe the "attacks from killer owls lurking in the trees". We would wear protective goggles in order to protect ourselves from "getting our eyes pecked out". One night, Steve even dressed up as a bear and walked around the outside in the middle of the night to try and frighten us. As a ten year old on the team for the first year, these stories and actions horrified me. Of course I would not show my fear in front of the other boys on the team, but Steve was more than willing to comfort me. He assured me that these stories were truly fictional, and allowed me to stay with him that night to make sure that no "killer bears or psychopaths" would find me. Stephen always was in the mood for a laugh, but the compassion that he showed to me and many other children truly showed his uniquely caring character.

When my time had ended with the Reds, my relationship with Stephen only grew stronger. Stephen hired me as a camp counselor at the Boys and Girls Club, a club that he revived when it was on the verge of ending its programs, but now offers activities for hundreds of children of all ages. I felt as if we would always be friends, and that he would always be there for me when I was in need. However, one day last fall, this all came to an abrupt end as Stephen was killed in a car accident by a drunk driver. Of all of my experiences with people and events in my life, there is no doubt in my mind that my friendship with Stephen has meant the most to me. Whether it was on the field giving me batting tips to help me get out of a hitting slump, or off the field when I was in need of a summer job or just wanted to shop for baseball cards, Stephen was always a man that I knew I could rely on.

Although he is no longer here for our friendship on earth to continue, we both know that our friendship will never die. Memories of the spirit walk, the Boys and Girls Club, waterslide parks, and the infamous "guacamole incident" often pass through my mind. Sometimes I see myself standing in Stephen's shoes as I attempt to help one of the children at the Boys and Girls Club. I can only hope that I am having a fraction of the impact that Stephen had on me. I imagine I will encounter other people in my lifetime who will leave such marks on my life. These marks I like to call "footprints". On Stephen's prayer card read a passage stating: "Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while and leave footprints on our heart and we are never ever the same." There is no doubt in my mind that the footprints Stephen left on my heart have changed my life and attitudes towards life itself. The footprints that he has left will stay with me forever.