A game of life: ALS fundraiser in Newburyport

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By Gillian R. Swart/amesbury@cnc.com
cnc
Fri Aug 03, 2007, 02:30 PM EDT


Amesbury -
Newburyport High School varsity baseball coach Bill Pettingell has had an incredibly successful career. His program not only has logged an awesome number of wins and spawned numerous coaches, but has also produced a group of men who remain committed to Clipper baseball. This group is the NHS Alumni Baseball Association. Coach’s boys of summer take care of each other, even long after they have graduated.

Nowhere is this more visible than in the case of Brent Paulhus, NHS Class of 1984. In 2001, Paulhus was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease ‑ a progressive neurodegenerative disease that attacks nerve cells and pathways in the brain and spinal cord.

“I received many, many phone calls from the team to offer their support,” Paulhus says.

In 2004, Mike McCormack, graduating captain of Clipper baseball, said he thought it might be worthwhile to try to support ALS research while resurrecting the alumni game. The alumni baseball games had been played on and off since 1974, but never had the players pitched, hit and run for a cause other than the baseball program.

McCormack was working with Brent Paulhus’ twin, Bryan, in Haverhill and the two had become friendly. When Coach Pettingell mentioned the alumni game, McCormack thought about his friend’s brother.

“I put two and two together, got the idea and went with it,” McCormack says.

Getting the appropriate co-sponsor ‑ Newburyport High School ‑ the Association arranged a game for the benefit of Brent Paulhus.

“I wanted to do it for a cause,” McCormack says. “It brings out the best in people.”

A former player for Coach and avid Red Sox fan, Paulhus says after 2004 he was set for funds, so proceeds from the 2005 and 2006 alumni games have gone to the ALS Association.

“Take a swing at ALS,” Pettingell says. “That’s our purpose.”
The game is played between teams comprised of a mixture of older alumni and recent grads. The guys who graduated in even-number years play guys who graduated in the odd years. Last year, Pettingell says, 43 former players showed up for the game. One of them, Mike Sullivan (Class of ‘90) flew in from Atlanta ‑ just to play. He went home after the game was over.

“That’s a pretty expensive gift to ALS research, I think,” Pettingell says.

Coach says the game is always scheduled for the second Saturday of Yankee Homecoming ‑ a time organizers figure a lot of alumni will be home anyway.

He does not play. “It’s a game for the alumni,” the 60-year-old says firmly. He does, however, have an honorary diploma, so technically he could join his former players if he so wishes.

Reversing the curse
Paulhus, who grew up in Newburyport but moved to Merrimac after his diagnosis, says all things considered, he thinks of himself as being very fortunate. The average life expectancy of a person with ALS is two to five years from the time of diagnosis, but he has had a slower progression of the disease. Still able to walk and drive, he volunteers for Amesbury Mayor Thatcher Kezer as his stand-in for events the mayor can’t make, and last weekend was in Philadelphia, at ‑ what else? ‑ a baseball game.

For the past three years, he adds, raising awareness of ALS and fundraising is how he’s spent his time. In October 2004, Paulhus and fellow ALS patient Matt Dowd of Andover launched www.reversethecurse.org to help both reverse the legendary Curse of the Bambino on the Red Sox and raise money for ALS research. On the site, Sox fans and Yankee fans were pitted against each other, dollar for dollar, on a Karma Score Board. As the ACLS went on, donations went up, and as we all know, the Red Sox went on to trounce the Yankees in the most dramatic way possible.

“He [Brent] and his twin brother are always right in there, selling tickets and such,” Pettingell says.

“I’m incredibly proud to come from a community where people pay the type of attention I’ve received,” says Brent.

One generous local gave Paulhus a state-of-the-art wheelchair at the 2004 game.

“Even if I give up coaching,” Pettingell declares, “this will always be something I think is very important for us to do.”

The big game
“We hope the public comes,” Pettingell says. “We need fans.”
The game starts at 10 a.m. tomorrow on the Lower Field at Newburyport High School. All the proceeds from the price of admission ‑ $10 or $20, and you get a tee shirt ‑ and the raffle will go to the ALS Association. This year’s hot item up for grabs is an autographed photo of Red Sox ace Curt Schilling, valued at $200. The Schillings are energetic fundraisers for the ALS Association. Last year’s game raised $2,000.

Post-game, the 2007 NHS baseball awards will be given out and the captain of the 2008 NHS baseball team will be announced.

Also to be honored are this year’s winner of the Alumni Baseball Association Scholarship, Christopher Bresnahan; the Alumni Association Person of the Year for 2007, Mike McCormack; coaches of the Northeast Squad of the 2007 Bay State Games Michael Crowley, Tim Leary, Ryan McCarthy and Peter Yates (all NHS grads) ‑ and Kyle LeBlanc, who was the lone player from Newburyport on the team, which on July 12 won the gold medal.

“I’d personally like to thank the community, local businesses and fellow alumni,” McCormack says. “Without them, this thing wouldn’t be able to go.”

“It’s one of my favorite days of the year, if not my favorite,” Coach Pettingell says.

Sure beats those pesky state tournaments.
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