More Than a Game

by Shorr-Parks, Eliot; Parks, Steve

• ISBN13: 9780984042906
• ISBN10: 0984042903
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-02-17
• Publisher: New City Community Pr

Summary

Anyone who has sat at the "Vet," watched a pick-up game, or played catch in the yard, knows that sports is more than a game in Philadelphia-it's a commitment to hard work, a belief in community values, and a tradition of never giving up.Told through the personal experiences of professional athletes, community leaders, and everyday players, More Than a Game captures how sports build character and communities with each hit of the ball, catch of a touchdown pass, or dunk of the basketball. Among those featured are Carlos Ruiz, Chris Pronger, Sonny Hill, Angelo Cataldi, Leonard Weaver, Rita Sloan Green, Ruben Amaro, Jr., Joe Banner, Alyson Goodner, Gary Cobb, Jim Ellis, Mayor Michael Nutter, Nicholas Bradley, Governor Edward Rendell, and Rami Ibrahim. The perfect gift for the aspiring athlete, the community coach, or the supportive parent.Eliot Shorr-Parks, a graduate of Temple University, is Associate Editor of New City Community Press. More Than a Game is his first book. He is currently working on a project focused on Philadelphia football. You can read his coverage of Eagles football on BuzzonBroad.com. He is a life-long Philadelphia resident.Steve Parks is an Associate Professor of Writing at Syracuse University and founder of New City Community Press (newcitycommunitypress.com). His previous books include Gravyland: Writing Beyond the Curriculum in the City of Brotherly Love and Class Politics: The Movement for a Students' Right to Their Own Language. He lives in Philadelphia with his family.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. x
Introduction	p. 1
Mayor of Philadelphia The Philly Fan Wants You to Put Yourself Out There	p. 9
Swimmer I Can Remember SeeingJack JohnsonJohnson, Jack	p. 15
Sports Fan It Cost a Quarter to Get In, Maybe Cheaper	p. 23
Lacrosse Coach Talent Has No Color	p. 31
Hockey Fan Somewhere in the Late 50's, There was an NHL Game On	p. 41
94 Wip Morning Show Host I'm Positive the Red Sox Killed my Father	p. 51
Sled Hockey I Looked Up.... But Didn't See Him	p. 59
Former Governor of Pennsylvania The Shoeshine Guy and the President of the Bank Can Both Have the Same Strong Opiniòn	p. 67
Espn Mike and Mike Show Are You Willing to Do This? Are You Willing to Sacrifice?	p. 73
Hockey Fan I looked up to athletes like the Broad Street Bullies because they knew how to handle danger. They responded by taking care of business	p. 79
Philadelphia Phillies At Those Moments, I Would Think of My Dad	p. 87
Sports Journalist When I was Six Years Old, The Game was Always On For Me to Watch with My Dad	p. 93
Muay Thai World Champion They See the Image of a True Palestinian, a True Muslim	p. 99
Philadelphia Flyers If Talent Won Every Time, What Would Be the Point of Working?	p. 111
Philadelphia Eagles An Education is Something They are Always Going to Have	p. 119
Football Player I'm Not Quitting. You Know, 'Cause I'm No Punk	p. 127
PDR Swimming Some Kid From the Other Team Got on the Microphone and Said, 'Stop the Music, There's a White Girl on the Floor'	p. 135
Philadelphia Flyers I Think the Camaraderie of the Team is What Got Us Through that Year	p. 143
Philadelphia Eagles That's What God Teaches Us ù To Continue to Press On	p. 151
Coach, PDR Swim Team And If We are Going to be PDR Swimming, Then We are Going to Represent the City	p. 159
Philadelphia Eagles I Think We Can Try to Use Sports Teams to Reflect the Values and Attitudes... We Have as Citizens	p. 167
Football Coach There Were "A " Students, Corner Students	p. 177
Basketball Coach We're Going to Play Hard, Come to Practice - No B.S.	p. 185
Baseball Commissioner Understanding Mt. Airy Baseball is Understanding Mt. Airy	p. 193
Philadelphia Phillies Mt.Airy Baseball Player, Philadelphia Phillies No. 1 Draft Choice	p. 201
Sonny Hill League Education Gives You the Opportunity to Get to Where You Want to Go Over the Long Period	p. 203
Philadelphia Phillies Getting There is One Thing, Staying There is Another	p. 223
Philadelphia Phillies I Knew with One More Pitch, We Were World Champions	p. 233
Sports Fan It's Easy to Play When You Know it's 20,000 Against Five, You Know What I Mean?	p. 239
Baseball Fan Rained Out at the Ballgame	p. 247
About the Editors	p. 250
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