Jake’s Big Day!
First pitch at the Padres game

"Jake walked up to the mound and threw a perfect strike right to the catcher, took off his hat and waved to the crowd. His picture was on the big screen. Then the crowd went absolutely wild"

Jake is throwing first pitch at Petco Park. Click on link below.
www.intelligentsolutions.tv/video/jakeatthepadres.wmv

Jake went to the Padres last night with the rest of our family and the Crawford's to throw out the first pitch courtesy of Albertsons and the Blue Ryno Foundation. First we went to a tailgate party hosted by Albertsons who were donating money to the foundation. We met Christian Kelly and Ronda Oswalt who had helped set things up at the tailgate party and were once again treated like royalty. Now when we go places I call Jake "Mr. President." We had Hot Dogs (did not even have to stand in line) and ice cream. Jake got a Padres hat and borrowed Christians sunglasses (which he still has..oops! got to give them back when we seem him next) Then we went to the stadium and Jake was escorted by the Pad Squad which is a group of beautiful blondes. (Had I known that I might have watched more games) They escorted him down to the field and introduced him when they presented the check from Albertsons. Then Jake walked up to the mound and threw a perfect strike right to the catcher, took off his hat and waved to the crowd. His picture was on the big screen. Then the crowd went absolutely wild. Also apparently the players are all signing a ball for him. Jake was all smiles ear to ear. After that we went to our seats and throughout the night were surprised by groups of his friends from school that went to the game just to see him throw the ball. This was a nice surprise for Jake because no one knew that so many of his friends would be there. As I watched him from afar it made me so happy because for those moments it was not about being sick. It was like the old times when I actually did not see Jake that much because he was always hanging out with his friends. I could see in his face that for this moment at least he was not thinking about being sick but was just a regular guy chatting amongst his friends. He is always happiest around his friends.

Much thanks to the Blue Ryno Foundation for again hitting 100% for Jake. It seems like it is more normal for people to get tied up in their own concerns and everyday life and to spend time worrying about little things. Then you walk down the street and see someone who is truly unfortunate. Maybe they are blind, or handicapped, or homeless. For that moment you think "How sad". But then the light turns green, your child screams or something happens and the thought of that unfortunate person is gone as you pursue your daily life routines. On the other hand we have people like those from Children's Hospital and Blue Ryno who have for some reason decided to make their pursuits for the benefit of others. What an admirable decision!