White House bound: Connor Hogan and his mom, Kim, are off to Washington, where Connor will play T-ball infront of the President.
Connor Hogan Selected to Play T-Ball in Front of President on White House South Lawn Today
On Wednesday, six-year-old Connor Hogan of Old Lyme did something that he’ll almost certainly remember for the rest of his life.Along with 50 other boys and girls – one from each of the 50 states and one from the District of Columbia (DC) – Connor played T-ball on the South Lawn of the White House with, not only his parents Kevin and Kim Hogan sitting in the bleachers, but also President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush.
How does a bright-eyed boy from Old Lyme end up playing baseball in front of the President of the United States? LymeLine dropped by the Hogan’s home in Lords Meadow to find the answer.
Apparently, it goes back to an invitation that was sent out by the White House in April through the Little League Association to all T-ball players in the country. Kim Hogan explained that she thinks George W. Bush is the first President who ever played Little League himself and consequently, he has hosted this annual event for the past seven years to honor his Little League heritage. (Connor wondered if George Washington might have been the first, but his mom said that although Washington probably played something similar, there wasn’t a Little League organization back then.)
Connor was a member of the Lyme-Old Lyme Cardinals and his coach, Brian Ritchie, forwarded the invitation to apply for the only spot open to Connecticut five- and six-year-old T-ball players to all his team.
Kim was immediately inspired by the invitation and composed a short but compelling letter to Paul Reid, the Instructional Coordinator for Lyme-Old Lyme Little League, explaining why she felt Connor deserved to be nominated.
(Photo by K.Hogan)
Connor in his Lyme-Old Lyme Cardinals uniform.
Kim said in her letter that she felt Connor’s, “Experience playing last year really helped in bringing out his confidence,” and that he learned, “Practice really helps.” Then she went on to describe how her father had served as a guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in the early 50s when he was in the army, and that it was “a tremendous honor to be selected to this post.” Moreover, her father, “was also a big baseball fan and patriotic citizen.”
Also, Kim noted in her letter, her brother David Pittsinger (the acclaimed opera singer who now lives in Essex with his wife, Patricia Schumann - also an opera singer) “sang the national anthem, at the opening of a Pirates game in the 90s.” Her father was there to hear David sing, but sadly died suddenly in 1996, “so Connor never knew him.”
Kim summarized her justification for Connor’s nomination in the words, “How I would love to show my son where his Grandfather served our country, to have him feel the patriotism in our capitol, and be able to play with other youth from all over the U.S.”
Reid then submitted Kim’s letter with his own letter of nomination to the national Little League office.
Fast forward to June 7 when, out of the blue, Kim opened an email telling her Connor had been selected as Connecticut’s representative to play at the White House. She and Connor were the only ones home and Kim said that together they shrieked with delight at the news. The hardest part, though,was the mandatory instruction to “Keep it quiet,” while all the legalities were checked.
Finally, the news was made public and the Hogans started to plan their trip. Connor’s father, Kevin, a News Channel 3 reporter, and Kim decided to take Connor down on the train to Washington. They left Tuesday morning and were hoping to meet State Representative Joe Courtney in the afternoon and take a tour of the Capitol with him.
After staying overnight in a hotel (“It has a pool,” adds an enthusiastic Connor), the trio convened with all the other players and their families this morning for a pre-game briefing and lunch. During that time, the players were divided into four teams, and given shirts and caps.
After a guided tour of The White House, the game began, probably between 1 and 2 p.m. All the major TV networks were expected to be covering the game and the White House itself ran a streaming video of the event on its own website (www.whitehouse.gov ).
Each player had one chance to bat and another to field. After the game, the President and Mrs. Bush mingled with the players and their families at a picnic on the South Lawn, and each player was presented with a ball signed by the President and a deck of playing cards bearing the player’s face.
Before traveling home today, the Hogans are planning to visit Arlington National Cemetery to show Connor where his grandfather stood guard. Kim commented that the experience has not only been incredibly exciting for the whole family, but for her mother, who lives In Cromwell, Conn., it has also been, “very emotional.”
Kim expressed deep appreciation to the Lyme-Old Lyme Little League organization, saying, “They have helped us out with expenses - they have been wonderful and so helpful. Much credit to them - we wouldn’t be doing this if it weren’t for them.”
Brimming wih excitement, Connor is all ready to go and catch the train to DC.
And finally, back to Connor, and how he feels about the adventure, “Good,” he replies politely. What is going to be the most exciting part? “The game,” he dutifully responds, and then just a couple more questions, “Do you play any other sports.” “Oh yes. Basketball, soccer, and swimming,” Connor says gleefully.
Well, we had to ask, “Which is your favorite?” Proving that six-year-olds possess a devastating honesty that adults have long since lost, Connor looked straight at us and said with a huge smile, “… Basketball!” |
