By Sally Tippett Rains

“Do Good. Have Fun. Watch Baseball.” It’s our motto and this week’s fan spotlight is shining on people who love to do all three, with a little emphasis on the “Do Good” part.

This was an exciting week for all three as they attended the Cardinals game and each had a special time in their own way.  We usually post a  “Fan of the Week” in our newsletter. If you know someone we should spotlight– or if it’s YOU, please email us at: Rains@STLSportsPage.com.

This week’s fans include someone who got the thrill of walking to home plate on the Busch Stadium field, someone from out of state who traveled with their family to see a game,  and a fan who’s involved in a charity bike ride we wanted to tell you about.

Tim Mitchell

He got to deliver the game ball!

Jake Fox

What a Fun Family Day for Jake Fox’s Family From Nashville

We appreciate when readers let us know they used our Drury Discount and they had a great time, that’s why we were happy to hear from Jake Fox. Jake has been a longtime reader and is very knowledgeable, often offering up great comments.

Jake and his family live in the Nashville area and came to town for the Rockies series.

“We had such a fun time at the game,” he said.

As you can see from the photo, one family member is sporting a Rockies shirt.

“We lived in Colorado for 10 years and that’s where the kids were born so we always go to a Rockies vs. Cardinals game,”  said Fox. “Our son loves smack talking and having fun, but also is very competitive so if the score doesn’t go his way he isn’t pleased ha ha.”

“Our daughter is not the biggest sports fan so she was more people watching than anything, he said.

Busch Stadium is a great place to people watch.

It was  the Build A Bear Fredbird giveaway when they were there,  and both of the kids enjoyed getting bears and trying to figure out names. Longtime Cardinals fans know how special those times are when you go to the games with your family members.

“They are entering their teen years so these days for us are dwindling down,” he said. “These days are more reflective for us as parents and we cherish each moment and memory.”

One memory they will always have is the Cardinals have a “Selfie Cam” and you can live stream yourself and they got on the big screen.

“They were on the big screen several times which was super exciting for them.”

“We stayed at the Drury Hotel and it was wonderful,” said Fox. “Right near Busch Stadium. The staff was so friendly and helpful and will drop what they are doing to serve guests.”

We often tell about the amenities the Drury Hotels are famous for, but this one we had not heard about. It would make it fun to bring the kids to St. Louis  and stay at the Drury Plaza Hotel by the ballpark for a game.

“They have a fun tradition where they hide tiny plastic Cardinals around the hotel for guests to find,” said Jake. “Our kids found about a dozen and want to form a baseball team with them.”

They timed the visit to go to  to the Sunday game which is the Cardinals “Ice Cream Sundays.”

“We got free ice cream sandwiches and  they had a craft for the kids to do,” he added.

All in all the Fox family made some fun memories by going to the Cardinals games.

“After the game the kids got to run the bases which is something I’ve never done in my nearly 100 MLB games” he said. “They love to tease me about that.”

We appreciate them for sharing that fun day with us. If you ever have fun photos from a game we’d love to have you as our “Fan of the Week.”

Jennifer Luner loves the games win or lose

Jennifer Luner and her husband Lee went to the Cardinals game on Monday night. It was hot, the Phillies had a no-hitter going until the sixth inning; and then when it looked like the Cardinals would come back, they didn’t– but that didn’t deter them from having a great time at the ballpark.

“There were many moments of excitement,” said Jennifer, who grew up in Collinsville, Illinois.   “If Nathan Church had just been able to hit a fly ball and drive in the tying run in the bottom of the eighth… we enjoyed ourselves.”

She has been a long-time Cardinals fan and has gone to Spring Training at least ten times.

“My friend JoEllyn and I  were in Jupiter on the morning when the major league baseball owners met in the clubhouse to cancel not only spring season, but the entire baseball season.”

That was March 13, 2020 when the decision was made to cancel Spring Training  due to Covid. They cancelled all games from there on out– until they ended up starting the season late. She said she watched the players pack up their lockers and head to their cars.

“We encountered Yadier Molina on the sidewalk,” she remembered. “He had stopped to talk to a young blind girl and her mother. He held up ten fingers , indicating we had to stay ten feet away from him. He was walking back to the clubhouse from the far practice field.”

Being to be up close and personal with the players is one reason she loves going to Spring Training. Besides Spring Training and games at Busch, Luner has always enjoyed going to see the Cardinals on the road.

“I have seen the Cardinals play in San Francisco, Houston, Denver, Chicago, and Atlanta.”

When her dad was still alive, she used to send messages to Jack Buck.

“I used to send a message to Jack Buck to say hello, to my dad, listening to the game in St. Louis.”

Her dad worked at a day job and and night job when she was growing up, so she never got to go to the games with him, but he instilled a love for the team and how to be a knowledgeable fan.

“My dad and I listened to the games together on KMOX from my earliest memories as a small child,” she said .”He was a huge fan of Jack Buck and so was I.”

She enjoyed going to the games at Busch Stadium II when she was a child.

“I got my first free tickets to a Cardinal’s game at Sportsman’s Park, for being a patrol girl when I was in the sixth grade,” she said. “Then I got the “Straight-A -Tickets” from seventh through 12 grades. They would reward good grades with  two tickets per game for six games.”

She doesn’t remember who she went to most of the games with, since her father worked nights and her mother was not a big Cardinals fan. The photo, right  was taken of Jennifer and her dad when she was about four.

“My brother gave it to me for Christmas a couple of years ago.”

It sits proudly framed in a prominent place in her home, and gives her good memories of the person who first introduced the Cardinals to her. One of the jobs he worked was At Fairmont Park, and he also worked at the old Cahokia Downs.

“He managed the money room where they counted and bundled the money every night after the races,” she said.

“My family got tickets behind home plate for his seventy fifth birthday,” she remembered. “He taught me to keep score, so I really enjoyed reading Rob’s recent article about the kid from Indiana, who has kept score at ever game he attended since childhood.”

Her father died at age 83 on New Year’s Eve 2001.

“It was between the time that Lee and I got engaged and then got married.”

Though she has been married to her husband Lee for 24 years, most of her Cardinals activities have been with a friend, because she got married later in life and had been going to games either by herself or with her nephews and niece.

“I was almost 50 when I married,” she said, and she already had her Cardinals game and travel habits.

“Lee has only been to see games with me in St. Louis,” said Luner.  “We went to see both of my great nephews when their school,  Craig School sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh inning stretch, and we go to the games on Ovarian Cancer Night in late September.”

Luner has had endometrial cancer twice, and they like to support the efforts of St. Louis Ovarian Cancer Awareness (SLOCA.)S

“We go with that group as my oncologist was their sponsor,” she said.

Luner realizes life can be fragile and she often pitches in to help with charitable causes.

Do Good:

She is gearing up to ride in the Bike MS: Gateway Getaway 2026 on September 26-27 in Godfrey, Illinois in support of the National MS Society.

“Last year during the Bike MS Gateway Getaway, I reached the top of a hill unlike any I had trained on. Where I live, we simply don’t have hills that steep,” she said in recalling a motivational moment for her. Though she was a strong bike rider, as she started down the hill she lost her confidence.

“I wanted to stop,” she remembers. “But I couldn’t.”

She could have, but she wouldn’t let herself.

“Stopping on a steep downhill isn’t like stopping on level ground,” she said, “Riders were behind me. If I stopped suddenly, I would fall.”

Worse than just her falling, she  could cause a big pileup and others could get hurt; and she knew that. There was only one thing left to do: the only safe place to stop was at the bottom. And she hoped to get there on two wheels.

“My speedometer probably never got above 12 to 15 miles per hour, though it felt like 25,” she said. “I squeezed the brakes all the way down the hill and kept the bike under control.”

She made it.

It had been a treacherous ride, that only she could understand, but she made it.

“Someone asked if I was okay. I gave a thumbs-up,” she said.

Years in corporate America had taught her not to let her emotions show on the outside; but on the inside she was still shaking, but she finished the race. And she had to do it all again the next day.

“Living with multiple sclerosis sometimes means finding another way forward,” she said. This September I’ll ride the Bike MS Gateway Getaway again to help create a world free of MS. If my story touched you, please consider supporting my Bike MS ride with a donation. Every gift helps. Thank you.”

If you would like to support her raising funds for this charity:
https://events.nationalmssociety.org/participant/891545

When you realize how precious every day is, a little heat, or a Cardinals loss doesn’t dampen your spirits. Jennifer Luner grabs every bit of fun life has to offer and for her part of that will be watching as the Cardinals continue with their rebuilding. She doesn’t always agree with all the moves made, but she’s with the team for the long haul– and she hopes the Players Association and the owners can hammer out their contract so there is no work stoppage and her annual trip to Spring Training will go on as planned.

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