On Sunday afternoon, I had the pleasure of attending a dedication to a baseball field in New Jersey to a great man–Mike Leible– who has helped so many young people focus into developing a long-term life plan that would be both challenging and rewarding. He happens to be the dad of one of my best friends in the entire world–Chris Leible–who has spent years in the sports business–first as a media relations professional for the New York Mets and is now a player agent.
Before telling you about the day, let me share with you a personal story about Mike Leible and how he helped me focus on something you all know about: My Dad. For years, my father had ailment after ailment ranging from open heart surgery to three lung cancer surgeries and most recently, a bout with dementia.
I remember standing in front of the Met dugout during batting practice and running into both Mike and Chris, I got such great advice. Mike told me, “Rich worry about the things you can control–the love of your father and take that love to inspire you in your everyday life. Spend time with him but know he will always be on your shoulder even when he is not with you.”
These are words I reflect on every day of my life whether I am thinking about Dad, my own health issues or even my job search. It may have been the MOST important advice I ever received in my entire life and Mike’s son, Chris, reinforces that notion every time I speak to him.
The NY Mets were such a big part of Mike’s Life–he never missed a game even he was not home the radio would always be by his side, “The thing about my dad”, said Chris yeaterday, “is he wanted people to know he was there to support you and not with only words, with actions.”
And this event in New Jersey illustrated that notion time and time again. After the ceremony, you could see so many parents playing catch with their children reinforcing what they were doing well but at the same time instructing them on the things they could develop into strengths.
I’ve covered so many events of this type in my career and have NEVER seen the amount of love I saw yesterday. People caring about people and never judging them–just supporting them and that was the story of Mike Leible who lived his life to the fullest, but always with the thought of helping people achieve all that they wanted to while never doing it at the expense of others.
And Mike Leible Field will forever be a place where this life plan will not only exist but will be the setting where Mike looks down on all of us inspiring us to be both teachers and learners.
I know every time I stand by Met dugout at CitiField I will think of the words he told me on how to deal with issues in life that may be difficult. The skies always look darkest right before sunrise and that is a concept that lives in my soul because of the values I see in both Mike and Chris Leible. And that is a blessing that I will benefit from for the rest of my life.
