Pirates Visit North Side First Responders
From the time we were kids, a lot of us wanted to be one of three things — a baseball player, a fireman, or a police officer. We could imagine ourselves as an on-field hero saving the game with a big K or home run, or a hero in the community flying down the streets, lights flashing, sirens blaring on the way to save the day. (Both of those jobs were always way cool to us.)
When you get the opportunity to hang out with baseball players and go meet community heroes, you realize they’re way cooler than you imagined and 10-year-old you is really satisfied.
Chad Kuhl knows what we’re talking about:
“Everyone wants to be a firefighter and a baseball player, right? So it’s really cool and really special to be here, and it’s going to be really cool to return the favor and welcome them to PNC (on Saturday).” — Chad Kuhl
On Thursday, we tagged along with a few of the guys (Trevor Williams, Chad Kuhl, Sean Rodriguez, Elias Diaz and Edgar Santana) around the North Side for a couple visits to Fire Station 32 and Pittsburgh Police Zone One to thank some of our local first reponders and invite them down to PNC Park on Saturday for First Responders Night. The guys distributed hats, t-shirts, and tickets, all while meeting some of the local heroes that work so hard to keep us safe.
Trevor Williams and Sean Rodriguez brought their families and it reminded us of just how much these heroes are looked up to — the kids were taking it all in at each stop and were even allowed to climb on the fire trucks, play with the sirens in the police cars and tour the S.W.A.T. trucks (all of this we did too, but we’ll focus on the kids, k?).
On Saturday, the Pirates will show appreciation for the men and women of Pennsylvania who serve as law enforcement officers, corrections officers, public safety, firefighters, paramedics and EMTs during First Responders Night at PNC Park. The night will include a pregame celebration on Federal Street as well as a pregame ceremony to honor the memory of Officer Brian Shaw, New Kensington police officer killed in the line of duty in November 2017.
“First responders deserve more than one day, but it’s good they’re getting recognized before the game on Saturday,” Williams told Pirates.com here. “Hopefully we continue to do it. It was cool to say hello to them.”
Check out all of the scenes from the day, documented by our team photographer, Dave Arrigo:
