An event review: Family Day with the Blue Jays

Written by By By Peter Brown ('96 BA, English, RPW)

One of the great things about moving to Waterloo 28 years ago to attend UW, and basically never leaving, is the sense of community and continuity that comes with living near your alma mater. As my 10-year-old son Alex has grown up here in Waterloo, he’s been able to experience some of the campus spirit that his dad took part in over the years. (Not *that* kind of campus spirit; he hasn’t been to the Bombshelter yet.)

We’ve been to football games at the new Warrior Field, and never miss a Fantastic Alumni Day with the Warrior basketball teams (Alex won some prizes this year!). He even attended a public physics talk at UW on the topic of black holes a month or so ago. Youngest human in the room!

Last Saturday, we enjoyed another fun excursion, courtesy of UW Alumni Affairs, as we took off to the Rogers Centre to see the Toronto Blue Jays take on the Minnesota Twins.

Now, those of us of a certain vintage will think of it as the SkyDome, as I do. In fact, I was on my last work term in Toronto in the summer of 1989 when that roof swung open for the first time. So witness our delight when I could point that out to my son as we watched the arched wing of the roof swing into place behind its counterpart to let the sun shine in.

Lisa McAughey and her alumni affairs peeps were in place, decking us out in our UW swag, as Alex and his friend Owen enjoyed the Blue Jays’ kids activities at gate 10. We knew it would be a scorcher that day with the humidity expected to climb into the mid 30s, so we kept ourselves and the kids hydrated and ready to go.

Into the ballpark we went, with the first order of business being snacks for the kids and mature beverages for the dads. As an excellent choir belted out the Star Spangled Banner, I explained to Alex that we get to hear both national anthems since it’s an international event with our visitors from Minnesota. Not the last thing I would have to explain at the boy’s first ever major league baseball game.

As expected, it was a warm one, but a beautiful hot July day for watching a ball game. Pretzels, popcorn, and candy. What else do you need in life? The only blemish on the whole day was the vanishing act performed by the home club’s offense as the Jays fell 6-0 to the Twins. That’s life in the big leagues. Luckily, they still have over 70 games to play to try to climb back into the wildcard race. While we would have loved to see the Jays win, it was enough to soak in the sun and cheer them on.

Altogether, a wonderful day organized by Alumni Affairs.

Thanks, everyone!