Cheering on the “Boys of October”
by Jennifer Head, BVM Archivist
As the “Boys of October” strive toward the World Series, I thought it would be fun to look at some of the biggest baseball fans in the congregation. I am indebted to Archives Assistant Kathy Day for her help, and to Ritz Benz for her 1991 Salt article. Both have inspired the stories below.
As a Chicago White Sox fan, I must start with Rita Benz herself. Rita came by her love for the White Sox honestly—her father Joe had been a pitcher for the White Sox from 1911–1919. On May 31, 1914, he pitched the ninth no-hitter in White Sox history, a 6–1 win over Cleveland. He was a member of the 1917 World Series team, but did not appear in a game. In 1919 (the year of the infamous “Black Sox”) he appeared in only one game and was released in May. Later that year, he was the “featured attraction” at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago, where ticketless White Sox fans could follow the World Series action on an electronic scoreboard.
Benz finished his White Sox career with a 77–75 record, 17 shut outs and a lifetime 2.43 ERA. When he died in 1957, he was remembered as “one of the fine characters of baseball.”[i] Rita’s mother, Alice, was also a White Sox fan. In a 1990 interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, Rita remembered her mother encouraging her to skip school to attend “Ladies Day” games. “Don’t [the teachers] know the Sox are home?” her mother would ask. Rita and her brother, Joe Jr., threw out the first pitch on July 11, 1990, for a “Turn Back the Clock Game” in the last season at old Comiskey Park. The players were dressed in the 1917 version of the uniform. Unfortunately, the White Sox lost that day to the Milwaukee Brewers 12–9.
Like so many BVMs, Helen Gerber was a passionate Chicago Cubs fan, despite the fact that she was born in Kansas City, Mo. Her room in Marian Hall was plastered in Cubs signs and she was part of a group that watched the games together; they even welcomed White Sox fans to join (no word on if Cardinals fans were also invited!).
In 1991, at the age of 79, Helen attended her first Cubs game courtesy of a friend who had gifted her two tickets. She attended with Diane Rapozo. Helen was even more excited when she saw the surprise organized by Geraldine Moorman: a scoreboard displaying a welcome to “Sister Helen Gerber.” To make the game even more perfect, the Cubs won that day.
But it’s not all about the Chicago sports teams. St. Lucian Deckelmeyer was a devout Kansas City Royals fan. She recalled that her whole family liked baseball but rooted for different teams. Her father was a St. Louis Cardinals fan and when they lost, her family would turn a large poster of a cardinal upside down. In 1974, after 29 years at St. Francis Xavier, she left Kansas City for Marian Hall with mixed emotions—she would miss her friends and her favorite baseball team. However, she brought two cherished possessions with her to Dubuque: a baseball autographed by the team members, and a letter from the Royals thanking her for her support and wishing her well in the future.
No matter what team they cheer for, I’m sure all the baseball fans would echo Rita’s observation in 1990, “baseball is baseball and it’s a wonderful game, no matter where it’s played.”