Red Sox to host 125 area youths for fifth annual Jackie Robinson tribute

The Boston Red Sox hosted their fifth annual Celebration of the Life of Jackie Robinson yesterday at the State Street Pavilion and EMC Club at Fenway Park, on what would have been the 88th birthday of the man who heroically broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947.

Among those who were on hand to discuss Robinson’s life and legacy will be Jackie’s daughter Sharon Robinson, who is the author of a new children’s book titled “Safe at Home.” Also attending the event were Peter Roby, director of the Center for the Study of Sport in Society at Northeastern University; former Red Sox player Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd; former Red Sox player and coach Tommy Harper; popular author, speaker and poet Dick Flavin; George Mitrovich, president of the City Club of San Diego and Red Sox Executive Vice President/Public Affairs Dr. Charles Steinberg.

Approximately 125 area youngsters from the Gavin Middle School and the McCormack Middle School of the Boston Public School system were invited to the event along with students from the Red Sox Scholars program.

“We want children to learn about Jackie Robinson’s life so they can teach their children and grandchildren,” said Steinberg.  “He was far more than a ballplayer; he was a man of character and courage who helped make possible the freedom that children have today to pursue their dreams. They owe him a debt of gratitude; we owe them the education.”

A member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Robinson became the first African American to play in the major leagues and this year marks the 60th Anniversary of that historic moment in our nation’s history, which will be recognized by Major League Baseball on April 15, the date on which 60 years ago Robinson first donned a Brooklyn Dodger uniform and stepped onto the baseball diamond at Ebbets Field for a game against the Boston Braves.