SAN DIEGO — Military service members and their families at Fisher House San Diego and Naval Medical Center San Diego enjoyed an all-star visit from theSan Diego Padres Tuesday.
“Look at mommy,” said Tiffany Clark to her son as he posed for a picture with former Padres player, Archi Cianfrocco.
Wounded Warriors and Navy Gold Star families were able to take photos with their favorite Padres players from the past and present.
“I’m from Texas so I’m supposed to be a Rangers fan, but I actually didn’t do baseball until I came to San Diego,” said Clark, who was invited by Wounded Warriors.
Her son has autism which can make going to baseball games with screaming fans and loud noises a bit too much to handle.
“It’s really overwhelming for him to be surrounded by all of the stimulation and all of the noise and sound,” said Clark. “So it was really great for him to be one-on-one with the player in a quiet and more personal environment.”
“There you are, partner,” said Randy Jones, former Padres and Cy Young Award winner in 1976, as he handed an autographed baseball cap to Clark’s son.
It was a Holiday Open House at Fisher House San Diego, where families who live out of town stay when their loved ones are in the hospital.
“This is an opportunity to brighten their day, boost their morale during a time when they have a loved one whose inpatient in the hospital or perhaps they are outpatient undergoing treatment themselves,” said Tiana Babcock, general manager at Fisher House San Diego.
Starting pitcher Joe Musgrove was busy signing autographs and posing for pictures with service members, their families, and hospital staff.
“I just love doing this stuff for the Pads, it’s a lot of fun, you meet some great people, I mean, what better place to go to support military families that need help,” said Cianfrocco.
Former starting pitcher Brian Lawrence from the early 2000’s shared his advice for families with loved ones at the hospital.
“Tough times are hard anytime of the year, but this time of the year makes it even harder, but you know, you got to keep pushing forward,” said Lawrence. “There’s something that can bring a little joy to your day and just keep moving forward.”
The morale boost for the service men and women and their families was certainly appreciated this time of year.
“It reminds us that there are people out there who really care about us even when perhaps you feel kind of alone when we’re injured and we feel like there aren’t people, it kind of gives us an opportunity to remember that there are people out there that care,” said Clark.
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